Pawtucket, RI (June 20, 2017) WinnCompanies, an award-winning national multifamily development and management company, and its partners Omni Development Corporation, a New England-based not-for-profit community development corporation and the Pawtucket Housing Authority announced the closing of financing for the sale and redevelopment of 101 units (Phase 1) at their 560 Prospect Street site. Concurrent with this transaction WinnResidential will manage the remaining 191 units (Phase 2) on behalf of the Housing Authority until financing can be secured for the redevelopment of these units.

I am pleased to announce this closing so we can begin the rehabilitation of Prospect Heights, said Pawtucket Mayor Donald R. Grebien. Our partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Rhode Island Housing, and other investors will allow the Housing Authority to preserve the affordable housing units and make the first major rehabilitation of this property since the 1980's.

This is truly a significant event in that we are preserving 101 units of low-income housing within the city and potentially another 191 units once we obtain the financing for Phase 2, said Stephen A. Vadnais, Executive Director of the Pawtucket Housing Authority. There have been many business partners that have made this possible. We are especially appreciative of the support we have received from Mayor Grebien on this project in preserving affordable housing in the City. It's a great day for the residents of Prospect.

Prospect Heights is the first development in Rhode Island to close on financing using the federal HUD Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, so this closing is particularly exciting, said Barbara Fields, Executive Director of RI Housing. RAD financing is one of the unique funding tools RI Housing is able to leverage to preserve housing and provides greater flexibility to rehabilitate public housing while ensuring that it meets the needs of the community.

As the state's first federally-funded public housing project, Prospect Heights is a truly unique asset and this renovation will ensure that it continues to serve the community for years to come, said Larry Curtis, President and Managing Partner of WinnDevelopment. We are looking forward to getting underway with the first phase of this transformation.

Omni Development and WinnDevelopment are thrilled to partner on the revitalization of Prospect Heights, said Lawrence E. Brown, President and CEO of Omni Development Corp. We've worked together on similar projects and have delivered tremendous quality work on time and within budget.

The transaction was coordinated under the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development's Rental Assistance Demonstration Program (RAD). Public Housing agencies are not allowed to leverage their assets to raise necessary funds to do rehabilitation and capital improvements. But RAD allows housing authorities to convert their operating funds ... to another form of rental assistance, allowing them to leverage debt to undertake rehabilitation and much needed capital improvements.

The redevelopment costs for the Phase 1 units are estimated to be $7.7M. Financing is to be provided by: Rhode Island Housing, Rebuild RI tax credits distributed by Rhode Island Commerce Corporation; low income tax credit equity financing from WNC Corp. of Irvine CA; federal historic tax credit equity financing; the Federal Home Loan Bank; the Pawtucket Housing Authority; and the City of Pawtucket through federal HOME and Community Development Block Grant funds.