Construction began this month on 312 housing units across four sites, the first projects to draw on Kansas City's expanded housing trust fund since the council recapitalised it in 2023.
Where the units are going
- Northeast, 96 units, 54 income-restricted at or below 60% AMI
- East Side, 84 units, all income-restricted at or below 50% AMI
- Midtown, 72 units, 30 income-restricted at 80% AMI
- Southwest Boulevard, 60 units, 26 income-restricted at 60% AMI
The mix matters. Earlier trust fund rounds financed almost entirely deep-affordability projects, which pencil only with layered subsidies and take years to close. This round splits the money between deep-affordability and mixed-income projects that can move faster.
The financing structure
Each project stacks four sources: trust fund gap financing, low-income housing tax credits, a county American Rescue Plan allocation that must be committed by the end of the year, and conventional debt.
The trust fund contribution averages $41,000 per income-restricted unit. That is high by national standards, and city staff acknowledge it reflects the cost of building on infill lots with remediation risk.
The cheap sites were cheap because nobody wanted them for forty years. We are paying the difference now.
A city housing official
Delivery dates
The Northeast and Midtown projects deliver in late 2027. The East Side project is the slowest, with a 2029 completion, because the site requires a full environmental remediation before foundations go in.
Danny Okafor
Danny writes about jobs, small business and the regional economy. He spent six years covering commercial real estate before joining the newsroom.
