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 It has been almost one full year since Sciortino hosted a similar
meeting for the groundbreaking of the development. On July 12th of
last year, a similar group of civic and community leaders were on
hand and several donned shovels to turn the first soil on the
property.
This week as Sciortino welcomed the group, he remembered his first
contact with Lincoln Mayor Keith Snyder. He said that often he
starts his campaign to bring a new development to the community by
sending an email to the mayor of a particular city. He explained
that many has been the time that the mayor has not replied to the
email, or they forwarded on to someone else who did reply.
He said when he sent an email to Snyder; he received a response
almost immediately, and it was an invitation to come to Lincoln and
sit down and talk about a possible project. Sciortino said
throughout the process Snyder had been proactive in helping bring
the project to Lincoln. He noted in his early meetings with Snyder,
the mayor helped point out areas where the complex could be built,
and was also the one who introduced Brinshore to local land owner
Doug Muck.
He introduced Snyder prefacing, “It is really because of the mayor
that this all happened, and we appreciate your support.’
When Snyder took the podium, he acknowledged members of the city
council who supported the project including several present:
alderwomen Marty Neitzel and Jonie Tibbs and alderman Jeff Hoinacki.
Also in attendance and acknowledged by Snyder were John Lebegue and
his staff of the Building and Safety office and Chief Mark Miller of
the Lincoln Fire Department.
Mayor Snyder indicated he was pleased with what he saw in Plowfield
Square. He related a story of driving his youngest daughter around
the complex and she, who is seldom impressed, was certainly
impressed with the look of the new apartment buildings and grounds.
Snyder noted an article he’d recently read by Richard Florida on the
From the Atlantic CityLab website [http://www.citylab.com/]
. He said the jest of the article was that since the housing crisis,
more Americans are turning to rental homes over buying. The article
said the number of renter households increased by more than half a
million in 2013. He read the following excerpt from the article.
“This huge growth in the renting population means that, in the
coming years, America’s housing crisis will have less to do with
foreclosures and underwater homes and more to do with rental housing
as the supply of these units is falling far behind growing demand.
The fact is that, even as more and more Americans want to rent; the
market just hasn’t kept up.”
Snyder concluded saying that he was pleased to see the new housing
option in Lincoln and was happy that the community is making an
effort to keep up with the demand mentioned in Florida’s article.
Sciortino said the 40-unit complex is filled, and there is a waiting
list large enough to fill it again. He said he would love the
opportunity to someday grow the complex and provide more affordable
housing for the community.
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Sciortino acknowledged the lenders who were involved in the
project including the Illinois Housing Development Authority and
U.S. Bank.
Cheryl Wilson of U.S. Bank was the next person to take the
podium. She spoke about working well with Brinshore for the past
20 years. She noted how nice the complex looks today and told
the group that this would always be the case. She noted her
experience with Brinshore shows that complexes that are 10 and
20 years old are still just as lovely and vibrant as this new
complex.
Sciortino began wrapping up the formal part of the day by
issuing thank-you's to his staff and those who assisted in
filling the units including Community Action and the Department
of Human Services. He expressed appreciation to the contractors
and architects, the Brinshore property managers and leasing
agents.
He ended saying, “To all those people who relied on us and
supported us, I want to say that it is our mission as developers
of affordable housing to have this look as good 10 years from
now, 15 years from now, as it does today. So it is my commitment
to the mayor, all the elected officials, and to our investors
and my staff, that this property will look as good 10 years from
now as it does today. And, I hope that all the people who live
here will enjoy it while they are here, and are proud of it.”
Sciortino and Snyder then shared in the duty of cutting the
ribbon on the new development, with Lincoln/Logan Chamber of
Commerce director Andi Hake and the chamber ambassadors joining
in.
There were three apartments open for tour along with the
community center. Everyone was invited to tour each of the four
locations and end their visit by enjoying a meal catered by
Guzzardo’s.
The apartment buildings are currently all full with a waiting
list. Of the 40 units, 25 percent are occupied by residents with
disabilities. Sciortino said the rent was determined based on
market studies of what the local economy could bear. Discount
rates were given to those with disabilities who can rent a one
bedroom home for as little as $290 per month. Rents, based on
one-, two-, or three-bedroom dwellings range from $290 to
$575.00 per month
[By NILA SMITH]
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