Nonprofit Developer Goes Green

Wolff Waters Place, a new $90 million green development near Palm Springs, Calif., has opened its doors to more than 200 low-income households, announced John Mealey, executive director of the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition (CVHC), the nonprofit housing developer that developed the project.

The 15-acre development includes 22 buildings with townhomes and garden apartments. Half of the units have three or four bedrooms and target larger families, which often have more difficulty finding appropriate housing. Rents are as much as 65 percent below market-rate apartments.

The city of LaQuinta made $30 million available to help fund the project. Another $43 million was generated by low-income housing tax credit investments from Citi and Wells Fargo through National Equity Fund, Inc. (NEF), which syndicated the credits. NEF has worked with CVHC on 14 projects.