DETROIT (March 21, 2022) – As part of the Preservation Partnership initiative, Enterprise Community Partners (Enterprise) and the City of Detroit’s Housing & Revitalization Department announced today new, no-cost services to help reduce barriers and increase the preservation of affordable housing in neighborhoods across the city.
 
Through working with Enterprise to proactively preserve affordability and maintain high-quality, safe housing, developers of affordable multifamily properties may now be eligible to receive no-cost predevelopment services, such as capital needs assessments, financial modeling, Phase 1 environmental assessments, energy assessments and tenant communications services to assist their recapitalization and affordable preservation efforts.
 
Enterprise and the City of Detroit are also excited to welcome new firms to the Preservation Partnership team. Development Finance Associates Inc., East Jefferson Development Corp., and Ethos Development Partners have joined the partnership as financial modeling providers. Natura Architectural Services, NPC Group and On-Site Insight will be providing capital needs assessments, and PM Environmental and TEG Environmental Services will be providing Phase 1 environmental assessments. Elevate will continue to provide energy/water assessments, benchmarking usages and projected cost savings, and information regarding rebates, grants and incentives. United Housing Community Coalition will continue to provide assistance with tenant engagement/communication and Uniform Relocation Act compliance.
 
"Providing developers and landlords with the right tools to preserve affordable homes is critical to solving Detroit's housing shortage, and we are honored to continue our partnership with the City of Detroit by spearheading this latest program," said Melinda Clemons, vice president and Central Midwest market leader, Enterprise. "We look forward to our continued work with owners and developers participating in the Preservation Partnership, and to finding new partners who are committed to preserving affordable housing across the city.”
 
Launched in March 2020, the Preservation Partnership initiative is led by Enterprise, in partnership with six nonprofits: United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC), Elevate, Data Driven Detroit (D3), CHN Housing Partners, Cinnaire and Community Investment Corporation (CIC) of Chicago. It is a key piece in the Duggan administration’s goal of not only creating 2,000 new units of affordable housing but preserving 10,000 units of existing affordable housing in neighborhoods across the city. The city is well on its way to reaching that goal, having preserved 6,200 units since 2018, in addition to another 1,400 new affordable housing units that have either opened or are under construction.
 
The initiative has helped create that strong preservation foundation in Detroit by working with numerous affordable housing owners to develop and implement preservation strategies. Among its accomplishments:

• Enterprise has facilitated preservation strategies and/or directed resources to 21 multifamily affordable housing owners, representing 27 properties and more than 1,700 affordable multifamily units. Several hundred of those have already been preserved with the rest in the pipeline and moving toward closing.
• D3 has created a robust affordable housing database to help the City identify priority properties to target for preservation efforts and track program progress.
• Cinnaire held six technical assistance trainings for affordable housing owners, and the training is available for viewing. 
• CIC continues to advise the partnership on naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) policies, engagement, and preservation strategies.
• Elevate has provided 17 energy and water efficiency assessments and directed additional no-cost improvements and resources to affordable housing owners, serving a total of 1,380 units.
• UCHC has provided CERA assistance, temporary relocation services, and tenant engagement and communication assistance to owners, supporting tenants of more than 300 affordable units.
• CHN and Cinnaire have been working with five owners of scattered-site, single-family developments, providing action plans and recommendations to seven projects serving 308 units in order to preserve affordable housing for either potential residential homeownership or long-term rental.

“The preservation of affordable housing is one of the city’s most important challenges, and the Preservation Partnership is a key tool that brings experts from a variety of fields together to mount an all-encompassing approach to addressing that issue,” said Julie Schneider, director of the Detroit Housing & Revitalization Department. “As our city’s revitalization puts pressure on the cost of rent, we are doing everything we can to ensure that the Detroiters who stayed in the city don’t have to live with the fear of being priced out. I would like to thank all of our partners for sharing this important goal and joining us in our efforts.”
 
The Preservation Partnership can assist owners of existing, occupied affordable housing create preservation strategies and prepare them for recapitalization by making these predevelopment services available at no-cost to the owner. Owners of regulated and non-regulated affordable housing are encouraged to contact Kyle Ofori to learn more about eligibility and additional resources and technical assistance. For more information on the Preservation Partnership or predevelopment services, contact RaShanté Carbin.

Media Contacts:

Dan Austin (City of Detroit)                                                   
dan.austin@detroitmi.gov

Karen Whitaker (Enterprise)                                                   
kwhitaker@enterprisecommunity.org