The City of Lincoln City Announces Innovative Housing, Inc. to Provide Affordable Workforce Housing

LINCOLN CITY, Oregon – The lack of affordable workforce housing is a familiar story for major urban areas such as Los Angeles and San Francisco. However, smaller cities also struggle with a disparity between housing prices and workers’ wages. Lincoln City, a beach town of 9,000 residents on the Central Coast of Oregon, has announced a development partnership that will help tackle this problem.

Lincoln City and the surrounding area face a crisis in the availability of housing options for their workforce and residents. According to the City’s 2017 Housing Needs Analysis, the median household income in Lincoln City is $35,524. About 55 percent of residents in the county are rent burdened, paying more than 30 percent of household income for housing costs (2011 Lincoln County Workforce Housing Needs Assessment). At the same time, employers struggle to hire and/or retain their workforce because of the demand for attainably priced housing.

Lincoln City has selected Innovative Housing, Inc. (IHI) to initiate the construction of approximately 70 to 80 apartment homes on a City-owned site on NE 25th Street, immediately north of St. James Episcopal Church & Santiago School.

“We had two key elements come together to create this affordable workforce housing development,” said Alison Robertson, Lincoln City Economic Development & Urban Renewal Director. “First, our elected officials made a commitment to addressing the housing crisis by making public land available for development. Second, we identified IHI as a non-profit developer with expertise in creating affordable, sustainable housing, evident in their portfolio of success stories.”

In addition to creating more housing choices, Lincoln City will also benefit from IHI’s expertise in assisting new renters and homeowners find stability and growth in their new homes.

“IHI provides more than just a home,” said Sarah J. Stevenson, Executive Director of IHI. “We offer resident services to help people maintain their housing, access opportunities and break the cycle of poverty. Our services are personalized and responsive to residents’ needs – we focus on people and develop programs that support them in their housing, careers and life.”

IHI responded to the City’s 2018 Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for the 25th Street site and other City-owned parcels. IHI has over 35 years of development experience and operates nearly 1,000 affordable units in Oregon. IHI designs developments to meet community needs in creative and effective ways, and pairs housing with wrap-around support services, including: eviction prevention, resource referrals, budgetary assistance, academic support and afterschool programs. If IHI is able to secure full funding sources for the project, the design phase will begin this summer with construction anticipated for fall 2021.

Lincoln City is a classic Oregon Coast community, offering a small beach town vibe with seven miles of walkable sandy beach. It is comprised of seven commercial and neighborhood districts along Highway 101. These historic districts each have a distinct personality with roots in art, commerce, surfing, fishing and tourism: Wecoma Beach, OceanLake, DeLake, Nelscott, Taft, Cutler City and Roads End.

For more information about either the City or the URA, or with regard to this development project, please visit http://www.lincolncity.org/propertydevelopment, or contact:
Alison Robertson
Director, Lincoln City Economic Development & Urban Renewal Agency
PO Box 50
Lincoln City, Oregon 97367
(541) 996-1095