Overview

Housing Opportunities Program is the 501(c)(3), nonprofit development arm of Fort Wayne Housing Authority (FWHA). We work with state and local government, as well as community organizations and private partners, in order to develop affordable housing options in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Over the past ten years, we have proven our commitment to our community be developing four brand new, affordable housing sites; Brooklyn Manor, and South Side Senior Villas. Our experience securing mixed-source financing to support our developments and the strategic partnerships that we’ve formed with local organizations, allows us to continue to expand the affordable housing needs of our community.

Hillcrest Pointe

Hillcrest Pointe will be a mixed-finance community for those individuals ages 62 an older. It will be an extension of South Side Senior Villas and will be located at 711 East Tillman Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46816. This development will consist of 35 total units (13 1-bedroom and 22 2-bedroom) and will be achieved by renovating the former Hillcrest Elementary School. Hillcrest Pointe will also feature a community room with computers, exercise equipment, and will provide access to outdoor walking paths, a picnic area, and bike racks to encourage residents to maintain a healthy life style.  This project will cost approximately $7.5 M and will be funded through a variety of potential sources, such as LIHTC, AHP, HOME, and Capital Funds.

River's Edge

From March through July, the Fort Wayne Housing Authority attended the 2016 Indiana Permanent Supportive Housing Institute (IPSHI), hosted in Bloomington, Indiana. IPSHI is sponsored by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) with the assistance of the national thought-leader in supportive housing, CSH. Teams comprised of developers and providers revealed their plans to create supportive housing developments in Anderson, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis and Evansville. These new developments will aid vulnerable individuals and families in their respective communities escape the cycle of homelessness while providing access to services that they require in order to remain stably housed.

During the institute, the teams received information from IHCDA and CSH regarding the selection of tenants, planning services, development and operation, employing a housing first approach as well as harm reduction approaches, and creating project budgets.
The project developed for Fort Wayne, River’s Edge, will be a new construction, mixed-use development in Fort Wayne, providing 48 units of permanent supportive housing for individuals and families with disabilities or experiencing chronic homelessness. This project addresses a demonstrated need for supportive housing in the city, and will include comprehensive wrap-around services to promote the successful integration of residents into the Southeast Fort Wayne community.

The Project was conceived by a partnership between the Fort Wayne Housing Authority (FWHA), UP Development, and Park Center. The FWHA has committed place-based Housing Choice Vouchers for the project to ensure the units will be easily affordable to our targeted populations, and leads community outreach and engagement efforts. UP Development brings extensive experience in developing high-quality affordable and supportive housing across the Midwest; its Walnut Commons development in Muncie was recently awarded the Lt. Governor’s Award for Excellence in Affordable Housing. Park Center is a mental health provider with a strong commitment to supporting Fort Wayne’s vulnerable populations, and will provide health and enrichment services to the Project residents. The City of Fort Wayne is also extremely supportive of the Project, and recognizes the value of introducing the supportive housing model to the Fort Wayne community.