AIRWAY HEIGHTS – With construction efforts coming to and end with the first phase of the project to build the Highland Village neighborhood, residents started moving in Dec. 15.
This is only the initial phase, and the neighborhood will be further developed over the next four to five years, according to Habitat for Humanity-Spokane Chief Executive Officer Michelle Girardot.
The first phase will open 24 multi-family and single-family rental homes along with ten homes that will be offered for ownership opportunities.
These homes are built and offered specifically to suit the needs of applicable families, Girardot said.
“Community Frameworks and Habitat for Humanity have ambitious plans for expansion in the coming years,” Girardot said. “Currently, Community Frameworks is in the process of securing funding for the creation of 50 additional rental homes, and Habitat plans to add 45 homes over the next four years.
“When Highland Village is complete, nearly 250 people will reside in this new community. There are also plans underway to develop a beautiful park where the kids can play, and everyone can enjoy nicely landscaped outdoor space.”
The project has been a long and hard-fought battle, and many setbacks have slowed the process, sh said. Airway Heights City Manager Albert Tripp said much of the initial challenge was allocating the resources and means to purchase the land Highland Village was built on and was a very tedious and time-consuming process.
Girardot said the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the process, as supply shortages started to show, and material and labor costs increased drastically, as well.
The project was initiated to provide alternative housing options for people that live in some of the areas directly around Fairchild Airforce Base, primarily near the base’s “approach” as described by Tripp.
He said that some of the residents in the area are subject to certain levels of noise pollution as the planes are either landing or taking off directly over their homes.
He also said much of the project was put in effect to help alleviate any possible safety issues that would come with potential equipment malfunctions when a plane lands or takes off. While scenarios with aircraft malfunctions are unlikely, there is a possibility, and this development eliminates the idea of residents having to live in the impacted area.
Girardot said there are other reasons for moving the residents away from the base.
“The location of the parks is also a barrier to any future expansion of Fairchild Air Force Base, the largest employer in Spokane County,” she said. “Highland Village offers an attractive, safer option for the residents of the parks and creates new opportunities for the future of land usage near Fairchild Air Force Base. With the lack of affordable housing options in every corner of Spokane County, Airway Heights is also experiencing both population growth and the need for housing of all types.”
Highland Village is built on a model that can be utilized across the state, Tripp said, noting it takes the direct needs of the residents and applies to realistic, maintainable housing solutions.
A previous housing needs assessment identified some of the definitive needs, and Tripp said that spurred a holistic approach that designed the neighborhood around the specific needs and incomes of those residents.
Families that partner with Habitat for Humanity in terms of home ownership get directly involved in the process, Girardot said.
“Partner families spend 250 hours helping build their own homes and take financial education classes (provided for free by Habitat) where they learn how to improve their credit, pay off debt and save money,” she said. “When they have completed all the program requirements, they purchase their Habitat home at an affordable price - mortgage payments are never more than 30 percent of their income.”
Tripp said he is excited to see this development come to fruition.
“This wouldn’t have been possible without working partnerships and collaborative efforts with Community Frameworks, Habitat for Humanity, Greenstone Homes, Sen. Jeff Holy, Rep. Mike Volz, Rep. Jenny Graham, County Commissioner Al French nd all of the council members that have participated in the project,” he said.
Matthew O. Stephens can be reached at [email protected].
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