City Council Approves West Sugar Creek Land Sale for Affordable Housing Development
The Economy Budget Inn Hotel shortly before its demolition.
Council cleared the way on Monday for the city to sell land in the West Sugar Creek Corridors of Opportunity, once home to a hotel plagued with criminal activity, to a nonprofit to develop affordable housing units.
The city purchased the 4.32 acres of land at 5350 Reagan Drive in April 2023. Before the acquisition, the property was an operating hotel with a history of nuisance and criminal activity. The March 25 vote approves the sale of the land to Prosperity Hidden Valley, LLC, for $1 to develop affordable, for-sale townhomes.
âWeâre really excited about this project,â said Warren Wooten, the cityâs assistant director of affordable housing. âThe [developer] is proposing 39 townhomes for affordable homeownership. So that meets one of the councilâs big objectives of providing more affordable housing opportunities in our community.â
The development calls for a minimum of 39 new construction for-sale residential townhome units, which must be affordable to families earning at or below 80 percent of the Area Median Income. The units must maintain the required rate of affordability for 20 years.
âFor perspective, a household of four, you're looking at income below $78,000," said Wooten. âThis gives folks at that income range an option to get into homeownership now, rather than having to wait.â
The developer will use the House Charlotte Downpayment Assistance Program and special mortgage financing options from reputable banking partners available to low- and moderate-income homebuyers.
The city sought to acquire the land as part of its investment strategy into the Corridors of Opportunity. Feedback gathered during the West Sugar Creek Playbook development recommended reducing the concentration of economy hotels at the interchange of Sugar Creek and I-85, which had been a hotbed for crime.
The parcel of land purchased by the city sits between I-85 and the Hidden Valley neighborhood.
âOne thing identified during the playbook work was that there was an overabundance of hotels on that corridor,â said Wooten. âOne of the strategies is to take down some of those hotels that have been under-occupied and put in new housing assets that the community is asking for. This site sits right next to the Hidden Valley neighborhood, and many of the residents there have been very vocal about wanting to see new homeownership opportunities.â
Affordable housing is only one wave of investment for the city as it revitalizes the area. Corridor Revitalization Coordinator Erin Gillespie says this is one of many ways the city is engaging the community.
âThis project has brought attention to other underperforming hotel or motel properties. But it's not the only way that the city is investing in the corridor, either. We have been working hand in hand with the new Sugar Creek Business Association, which is focusing on organizing the business owners within the corridor.
We also received a large federal grant last year for the Sugar Creek mobility corridor project, which will bring a whole suite of mobility infrastructure investments to the community. So this housing project is a huge investment and a really big win. And it's one of many ways we're working with the community to grow the corridor.â
Visit charlottenc.gov for more on the Corridors of Opportunity,
|