AMHERST — Seeing an opportunity for herself and her teenage son to relocate to a better apartment, Heather Steele put her name into an Amherst Housing Authority lottery for six vacant units at Presidential Apartments in North Amherst.
Shortly after the Aug. 11 lottery, Steele, who works full time at Bluebonnet Diner in Northampton, received the news that she had been hoping for.
“They called me and told me my name was the first picked,” Steele said.
But just days later, after cobbling together the $3,100 she would need to meet various expenses associated with the move, including the first and last months’ rent, Steele was informed that the two-bedroom apartment would not be available, forcing her to get a temporary extension of her lease to remain at Butternut Farm apartments and to scramble to maintain housing in the town where she has lived for 15 years.
“I almost got put out on the street, and I’m still being affected because I can’t find a place to live,” Steele said.
In a town where waiting lists are long for affordable housing, having six “low-rent” apartments come on line at Presidential Apartments gave many an incentive to participate in the lottery for what had been expected to be Sept. 1 occupancy at the 950 North Pleasant St. complex.
The lottery was a requirement of creating what are known as Local Action Units through the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development.
Amherst Housing Authority Executive Director Debbie Turgeon confirmed that, even though her agency oversaw the process to select those in the lottery, she had to notify the winners that units wouldn’t be available.
“We put a flyer out there and did the lottery, and then learned that were no units,” Turgeon said, adding that this was out of the agency’s control. “It’s an unfortunate situation and we feel bad about it.”
But Allen Cohn, manager of Presi dential Development Co. in West Hartford, said that the problems were discovered by Kamins Real Estate, which handles leasing at the Presidential property.
The list of potential candidates supplied by the Housing Authority was insufficient.
“Patrick Kamins had spoken to the potential candidates and vetted them in the same was that we do all our potential tenants,” Cohn said. “Several had very problematic credit histories, (and) several others did not have the required security deposits necessary.”
In May, the Amherst Select Board and other town officials, as well as Cohn, signed the regulatory agreement authorizing the set aside of six apartments to count toward the town’s Subsidized Housing Inventory, for the Amherst Housing Authority to serve as monitoring agent, and for this restriction to remain in place for 30 years.
The six affordable apartments, for people earning 80 percent of the average median income or below, were first mandated in 2013 as part of a special permit when Presidential Development sought to add 54 units to the complex. Using the town’s inclusionary bylaw, which requires a certain number of affordable units in any large-scale development, the special permit was approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
These set guidelines mean that for one person the income can’t exceed $44,800; for two persons, $51,200; for three persons, $57,600; and for four persons, $64,000. Rents would also be significantly lower than regular apartments. For one bedroom, the rent would be $824 per month with heat and hot water, about $250 less per month than market-rate apartments. For a two bedroom, the rent would be $1,016 with heat and hot water, approximately $500 less per month, and for the three-bedroom units, with just hot water, $1,142, or about $800 less per month.
Five of the affordable units, three one-bedrooms and two, two-bedrooms. were to be in the new section at Presidential, with one three-bedroom unit in the older section.
Town officials say they are trying to learn more about what transpired.
Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek said due diligence includes gathering information prior to a meeting with Cohn and Kamins.
Ziomek said the town plays only a peripheral role. “We’re a signatory to the regulatory agreement, but we’re not a part of the lottery itself,” Ziomek said.
Senior Planner Nathaniel Malloy said once the signed agreement is in place, Presidential had to develop a marketing plan, and contracted with the Amherst Housing Authority to do this.
Even after people are selected, Malloy said, additional screenings can happen and, including background checks and making sure people have the financial means.
He anticipates that the state’s DHCD is formulating a response to concerns that have been raised. Reached by phone, Rieko Hayashi, a program coordinator, said she was not authorized to comment.
Such opportunities for affordable housing are uncommon, with the previous lottery occurring prior to the opening of Olympia Oaks on East Pleasant Street in 2014.
Those who went through the latest lottery, like Jennifer Goldman, remain upset about what they see as a flawed process. “It’s downright deceptive,” Goldman said.
Steele said there are others in her situation, some who now may not have housing. “It was a scam and we all have nowhere to live,” Steele said.
Ziomek said the town doesn’t want to lose these units and will do what it can to ensure that the half dozen apartments are rented as affordable.
“We want these units to be available to people who are income eligible, and we want them to remain on the Subsidized Housing Inventory,” Ziomek said.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
