While it has only been a few years since it first launched, the Dallas Public Facility Corporation has been trying to make sure people that work in Dallas can also live in the city.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the Dallas Public Facility Corporation (DPFC) made the news outlet’s list of the most influential non-profit community organizations of 2023. While some of the nonprofits spotlighted by The Dallas Express focus on boosting the city’s image or distributing food to the needy, DPFC deserves to be recognized for its efforts to provide Dallasites with “affordable housing” options.
“In general, the DPFC seeks to develop and preserve mixed-income workforce housing communities to serve residents earning at or below 80% of the area median income … as well as provide non-income restricted units,” reads the organization’s website.
The City of Dallas chartered DPFC back in 2020 in accordance with Texas’ Public Facility Corporation Act. DPFC doubles as a public non-profit corporation and public facility corporation.
It partners with organizations to acquire, renovate, or build mixed-income housing developments in Dallas, working to make sure that property managers and developers are marketing effectively and appropriately. DPFC also provides residents with “enhanced protections” and tries to ensure that there is no income discrimination occurring at affiliated properties.
According to its annual report for fiscal year 2022, DPFC executed on three properties: Standard at Royal in Council Member Omar Narvaez’s District 6, Oakhouse at Colorado in Council Member Chad West’s District 1, and Mountain Creek Apartments in District 3, which is now represented by Council Member Zarin Gracey.
“These three projects represent an approximately $177,000,000 investment in affordable housing development in the City for a total of 839 units. All of these developments are new construction and will add affordably priced rents in at least 50% of the apartment units,” reads the report.
“As a result of closing these transactions the DPFC received roughly $1.6 million in revenue from transaction and development fees for the year. This money will be used to further the objectives of the DPFC in providing safe, decent, and affordable housing to residents of Dallas,” the report continues.
While DPFC made some strides in alleviating Dallas’ current housing shortage, the City has seen its share of criticism over its slow permitting process and burdensome building regulations. Additionally, developers have taken issue with the City’s housing policy, which requires developers that get funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to satisfy “affordable housing” criteria, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
In the case of multi-unit housing, developers must typically work in a certain number of “affordable” on-site units for low-income renters. However, even with HUD funding, the difference between a developer’s costs and the money a building is expected to generate from low-income rents can stop such prospective developments in their tracks, according to the Urban Institute.
Still, DPFC keeps plugging away at its mission, even as a new law recently enacted by the state legislature aims to reform public facility corporations.
“Generally they’re trying to enact some further guardrails. … Other jurisdictions have used the PFC in a way different than we have,” said Dallas Housing Finance Corporation Administrator Aaron Eaquinto back in May, according to Candy’s Dirt.
“They have been acquiring projects, taking them off the tax rolls, and not necessarily providing a lot of rent savings. We haven’t done that. Most of the changes that are going to be enacted won’t affect us. We’ve been doing it the right way, so it’s something we can be proud of,” Eaquinto said.