Inlivian pitches plan for affordable housing uptown, seeks $6 million in public funds
Inlivian is seeking $6 million from Mecklenburg County commissioners to build 368 mixed-income apartments uptown, 110 of them below market rate.
The request from Inlivian, formerly the Charlotte Housing Authority, is one of several options commissioners will consider when allocating $14.5 million from selling land owned by the county and Bank of America to the developer leading the Seventh and Tryon development.
At issue is whether directing money out of uptown, where land is cheaper and more affordable units can be built, is more effective than spending more to put fewer units in the city center, where officials have long noted the lack of affordable options.
Inlivian — and its land on the adjacent block — initially had been part of a larger, two-block Seventh and Tryon development. But disagreements about whether Inlivian would sell its land outright or lease it to a master developer scuttled those plans. The current 1.5 block Seventh and Tryon plan calls for retail, an office tower and apartments with up to $30 million in taxpayer money, much of it for parking.
Inlivian CEO Fulton Meachem said its “Eighth and Tryon” plan allows hospitality, restaurant and other employees who work uptown to live nearby.
“(For) people that work every single day in this city to help provide a high quality of life for others, it will give people the dignity to live where they work,” Meachem said.
Affordable units in uptown
Inlivian’s six-story development would be built on its 2.2 acre property that includes the now-empty Hall House, which at times has been a hotel, low-income residence and winter shelter.
The $103.5 million development calls for 368 apartments, 110 of them affordable, and ground level retail on Tryon Street.
The affordable units would be divided in thirds, Inlivan officials said, priced for households earning 30%, 60% and 80% of the area median income. That’s $23,700, $47,400 and $63,200 for families of four, respectively.
It could break ground in 18 months once funding is secured, officials said. Inlivian officials said the project will use low-income housing tax credits and would explore applying for Charlotte’s Housing Trust Fund.
Inlivian plans to work with Urban Atlantic, a Maryland-based developer, and Charlotte-based Odell Associates architecture firm.
The pitch comes one week after county officials provided updated options for spending the land sale funds on affordable housing.
Commissioners also have the option to spend the $14.5 million on 36 affordable units — of more than 300 total — within the Seventh and Tryon development.
They could also choose to add to the $4.2 million Bank of America has already committed for existing affordable housing developments outside of uptown, where land is cheaper and more units can be built.
“When we’re discussing public dollars, the public should be able to live wherever without any restrictions,” said Commissioner Mark Jerrell, noting the important of having affordable housing uptown.
Several commissioners praised the Inlivian pitch, including Susan Harden who noted it would create more units for less public money than the proposal for affordable housing within Seventh and Tryon.
“Am I crazy to think this is too good to be true?” she said. “It feels like a really incredible opportunity.”
Wiping away history?
Inlvian’s plans would demolish the 12-story Hall House, formerly the Barringer Hotel.
The Barringer Hotel has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2011, according to a federal database.
“We have a very bad habit of this in Charlotte, destroying our history,” Commissioner Trevor Fuller said. “The fact that we’re basically blithely wiping it off the face of our town, that does trouble me.”
The building, built in 1940, is described as ”the first high-rise built in Charlotte after the Great Depression and one of only two Art Deco-style high rises,” according to the registration form for listing.
The housing authority bought the property in 1981 and had operated low-income senior housing there, but about a decade ago determined it needed substantial upgrades. It has been empty since 2014.
The earlier two-block Seventh and Tryon plan that included Inlivian land called for the Hall House to be refurbished as a boutique hotel.
Development team members said they explored options to repurpose the building with their current proposal, but said the renovations required to create apartments up to current building code would be too costly and the current low ceilings, cramped layout and other older features would be less desirable to tenants.
“It wasn’t something that we took lightly,” said Bereket Selassie of Urban Atlantic. The development team said they will work with the county’s historic landmarks commission to determine how to integrate the property’s history into the development.
“The intent is... to honor that legacy and celebrate that history but at the same time support the new residents,” said Brad Bartholomew of Odell.
Demolishing that structure could affect construction timelines, Inlivian and its development team acknowledged, by possible bureaucratic delays or community opposition.
Commissioners are expected to vote Tuesday on how the land sale money will be used for affordable housing.
This work was made possible in part by grant funding from Report for America/GroundTruth Project and the Foundation For The Carolinas.
This story was originally published May 28, 2020 at 11:28 AM.
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