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Webster Street homes may be saved By Myles Murphy Ashland Daily Tidings Three homes in danger of demolition will instead become affordable housing if the Ashland Community Land Trust is allowed to shift its use of a grant received in 2001. The ACLT was originally awarded $120,000 in 2001 to purchase property to develop four affordable housing units. "We've been unsuccessful trying to find some kind of property for two years," ACLT President Krista Berry said. "Land is too expensive, and we're competing with for-profit companies that can ace us out (of land deals.)" Formed in 1997, The Land Trust purchases property, then sells the homes at reduced prices to applicants who qualify. The buyers lease the land on a 98-year renewable lease. The non-profit group started looking at three houses on Webster Street which Southern Oregon University must either demolish or move to make space for a new building which will house the Rogue Valley Community Television studio. Through working with SOU, the Rogue Valley Community Development Corporation and local developer Larry Medinger, the ACLT is very near to closing the deal, according to Berry. The Land Trust must first get approval from the Ashland City Council and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to allow the money to be used to buy three parcels to relocate the three homes, rather than buying land for four new homes. City staff and the Ashland Housing Commission have recommended approval of the proposal. "It's kind of a long-overdue success," Ashland Assistant Planner Brandon Goldman said. "The reduction in the number of units � is a reflection of the market reality of Ashland increasing land values." Medinger Construction Co. recently purchased 1.2 acres between Hersey and Patterson streets for $800,000 and is willing to sell three lots on the site for about $90,000 each. The RVCDC - a nonprofit which works to build affordable housing units in the Rogue Valley - will assist with relocating and rehabilitating the older homes, which were built in the 1940s and '50s. Two of the homes have already been moved - an indication of the four players' confidence in eventual success. At the end of the process, the Land Trust will own the lots and sell the homes - while holding the land in trust. Qualified buyers will be able to purchase the homes for about $120,000. To qualify, buyers will likely be in the 80-percent median income area - about $39,000 annually for a family of four. The Ashland City Council will consider the grant change when it meets June 17. Comments on the change may be submitted in writing through June 17 to: Brandon Goldman, City of Ashland, Department of Community Development, 51 Winburn Way, Ashland, Ore. 97520 or e-mail [email protected]. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -