Gorman & Company, in partnership with the Housing Authority of Maricopa County (HAMC), broke ground on the redevelopment and revitalization of the historic Coffelt-Lamoreaux Apartment Homes on Wednesday April 27, 2016, after nearly three years of planning. This 301-unit, 38-acre public housing development was originally built for returning Korean War veterans and migrant and seasonal farmworkers and now houses low-income individuals, families, seniors and households with disabilities in the Phoenix area. Designed by renowned Phoenix architects, Lescher & Mahoney, the Coffelt-Lamoreaux Apartment Homes were built in 1954 during the Harry S. Truman administration and represent the first physical manifestation of Maricopa County’s commitment to provide affordable housing to its lowest income residents.
The Housing Authority of Maricopa County had originally planned to demolish and dispose of the Coffelt development due to its physical decay and lack of federal resources to recapitalize the property. However, with 75% of the student body at the adjacent Hamilton Elementary School residing at Coffelt, the County quickly realized that closing Coffelt would result in closing the school. At the same time, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development announced a new program, called the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, allowing public housing agencies to enter into public/private partnerships to leverage public housing subsidies with other resources such as tax credits, tax exempt bonds, HOME and CDBG funding, as well as other federal, state, local and private dollars to recapitalize the aging inventory of public housing across the U.S. Coffelt was the first project in Arizona to ever be awarded a RAD commitment from the federal government, and has since been added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Coffelt is currently undergoing a ‘gut-rehabilitation’ that will take 18 months to complete. The new Coffelt will have new streets and sidewalks, new off-street parking bays, underground utilities, new plumbing and electrical, brand new kitchens, baths and appliances, as well as small additions to modernize the floorplans. Gorman & Company, Inc. has developed a reputation across the U.S. as being a strong partner with non-profit organizations, public housing authorities, and state and local government agencies. We are an innovative problem solver and pride ourselves in accomplishing some of the most complex revitalization projects facing local communities in our core markets. We congratulate the Housing Authority of Maricopa County and all of our project partners for your innovation and entrepreneurship which will result in turning one of Phoenix’s greatest liabilities into a community asset for decades to come. We also thank our financial partners including HUD, the Arizona Department of Housing (ADOH), the Arizona Commerce Authority, the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), the Industrial Development Authority of Maricopa County, the City of Phoenix, Affordable Housing Partners/Berkshire Hathaway, Stearns Bank, the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, the Raza Development Fund, Paragon Mortgage, Red Capital, the Arizona Community Foundation, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation and the Vitalyst Health Foundation for making this project a success.
For more information on the Coffelt-Lamoreaux Apartment Homes, or to inquire about other revitalization needs in your community, contact Brian Swanton, Arizona Market President at (602) 354-3105 or check us out on the web at www.gormanusa.com.
