Chandler is seeking to renew the federal designation that reserves Kingston Arms Apartments for low-income seniors, a step the city takes every two years to keep the 303-unit complex available for elderly and near-elderly residents.
The Housing and Human Services Commission is scheduled to recommend Resolution HO194 during its June 10 meeting, forwarding the request to the Public Housing Authority Commission for approval. The city must then submit a certification to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Kingston Arms Apartments, at 127 N. Kingston Street, was built in the early 1970s specifically to serve elderly and near-elderly low-income residents. HUD defines elderly as age 62 or older and near-elderly as age 55 or older.
The city's Housing and Redevelopment Division, which operates as the Public Housing Authority, assists 303 families across Chandler's public housing portfolio. Kingston Arms has been designated for elderly and near-elderly residents since the inception of the city's Public Housing Authority.
HUD requires housing authorities to renew this designation every two years under a Public Housing Information notice. The certification must address four criteria: the project name and location, the number of units and percentage designated, the total units in the project, and the population served in the designated units.
If HUD grants the renewal, the designation continues for two additional years and is subject to another renewal cycle. The designation applies only to Kingston Arms Apartments.
The request has no direct cost impact on the city, according to a staff memo from Larissa Gorski, Chandler's Affordable Housing Manager. HUD funds the costs associated with the Public Housing Program, and the renewal would continue operations as they have been since the program's inception.