The City of Greenville + Greenville Housing Fund (GHF) announced a city contribution agreement and accelerated funding to support an additional $13.4 million to deliver 549 new units. With this contribution, ~1,000 people are expected to have improved housing in Southernside.

GHF was established in 2017. Since then, $17 million has been invested in producing 1,158 affordable homes in the city, despite the rising cost of construction + financing. In 2020 it led a strategic plan with the goal of delivering 3,736 affordable homes over ten years.

This new investment will take the cumulative investment to a total of $30.4 million, 1,707 units, and 46% progress including all GHF’s investments in affordable housing.

How 549 new units break down:

Southernside Senior Apartments (Unity Park): 147 affordable senior units
Parkside Lofts at Unity Park: 242 affordable housing units
Riley at Overbrook: 88 affordable housing units
Gateway at the Green: 72 affordable housing units

So where does this money come from?

Don’t worry, your taxes are safe. This contribution comes from a public-private partnership. The city, through a contribution agreement, has leveraged its public dollars — ~$2.5 million annually — to pay the debt service on a large loan of $13.4 million to invest in affordable housing.

GHF will invest those dollars into the projects we mentioned over the next five years. Additionally, the city will invest a second portion of funding toward affordable housing for the following five years to help close the remaining gap, cutting the affordable housing deficit in half.