Pennrose has been awarded housing tax credits from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency to help fund the development of two projects, Apple Street Senior in Cincinnati and Warner and Swasey in Cleveland. The Finance Agency today announced more than $31 million in 10-year federal housing tax credits awarded to 37 developments throughout the state as part of its 2020 Housing Tax Credit program.

“We can’t thank the Ohio Housing Finance Agency enough for their support of these transformative developments,” said Lasserre Bradley, Regional Vice President at Pennrose. “Pennrose has made significant strides over the last few years in growing our presence in Ohio providing distinctive affordable housing options throughout the state. With the invaluable neighborhood-level knowledge of our project partners, both Apple Street Senior and Warner and Swasey are designed to meet the specific individual needs of each local community.”  

Apple Street Senior is the first designated LGBTQ-friendly, senior affordable housing development in Cincinnati. In partnership with Northsiders Engaged in Sustainable Transformation (NEST), Pennrose will develop 57 new studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments priced at 30% to 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI). In addition to the high-quality apartments, residents will benefit from supportive services provided by Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio and Caracole, the Greater Cincinnati region’s nonprofit AIDS Service Organization devoted to positively changing lives in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

"NEST is proud to add this cornerstone project to our 15-year history of mission-driven housing improvement in Northside,” said Sarah Thomas, Executive Director of NEST. “We look forward to a strong partnership with Pennrose and Caracole offering safe, affordable housing to underserved populations and keeping our neighborhood diverse, welcoming and open to all."

“We are so excited to partner on Apple Street Senior and serve this vulnerable population,” added Linda Seiter, Executive Director of Caracole. “Finally, LGBTQ seniors will have a safe, affordable and supportive place to live with their peers.”

In addition to Apple Street Senior, Warner and Swasey in Cleveland was awarded tax credits from the special “Strategic Initiatives” funding pool, which selects recipients based on proposals that address priority housing needs and have significant community impacts. Developed in partnership with MidTown Cleveland, Warner and Swasey will be a dynamic mixed-used, mixed-income, and mixed-population historic adaptive reuse of the former Warner and Swasey manufacturing plant. The redevelopment includes 140 affordable and market rate apartments for seniors and workforce housing, along with office space geared towards the technology and manufacturing fields with an emphasis on workforce development.

Beginning in 2007, Pennrose has established an impressive pipeline of high-quality residential communities throughout the region, prompting the establishment of a regional office in Cincinnati in 2017. In addition to Apple Street Senior and Warner and Swasey, Pennrose is actively developing College Hill Station in Cincinnati, Cedar Redevelopment III in Cleveland, Eastern Woods with the Blanchard Valley Health System in Findlay, Lincoln & Gilbert with Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation in Cincinnati, and continuing to work in predevelopment on Bond Hill Senior with the Greater Cincinnati Development Corporation in Cincinnati.