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Affordable Housing in Knollwood: Three Decades of LIHTC Projects
CATEGORY
Affordable Housing
DATA
LIHTC Projects
Median Income
Racial Distributions
Population
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Affordable Housing
LIHTC Projects
Median Income
Racial Distributions
Population
Knollwood, a neighborhood in Kalamazoo, Michigan, contains a significant portion of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) funded affordable housing. The neighborhood's LIHTC inventory comprises 180 total units, with 31 designated as low-income units. Based on the 2022 population of 5,179 and using the national average household size of 2.61, the estimated number of housing units in the neighborhood is approximately 1,984. LIHTC funded affordable housing accounts for about 9.1% of the estimated housing inventory in Knollwood.
The LIHTC projects in Knollwood have received $1,470,293 in project tax credits. This equates to an average federal funding of approximately $8,168 per unit across all LIHTC-funded projects in the neighborhood. Affordable housing has been present in Knollwood for over three decades, with the first project, West Michigan Woods, completed in 1989. The most recent addition to the affordable housing inventory is the Village Of Kalamazoo Apartments, completed in 2019. This 30-year span indicates a long-term commitment to providing affordable housing options in the neighborhood.
The 1980s and 2010s were the decades with the most affordable housing projects completed in Knollwood. The distribution of units in LIHTC-funded projects includes 15 one-bedroom units, 108 two-bedroom units, and 42 three-bedroom units, suggesting a focus on accommodating families of various sizes.
Over the last decade, Knollwood's population has fluctuated, reaching a peak of 7,025 in 2014 and decreasing to 5,179 by 2022. The median income has shown significant improvement, increasing from $17,816 in 2015 to $27,767 in 2022, potentially indicating changing economic conditions in the neighborhood.
Racial demographics have also shifted, with the white population decreasing from 69% in 2015 to 54% in 2022, while the Black population increased from 15% to 22% during the same period. The Hispanic population has remained relatively stable at around 11%. These demographic changes coincide with the completion of the Village Of Kalamazoo Apartments in 2019, suggesting that the new LIHTC project may have responded to evolving neighborhood needs.
Knollwood's LIHTC-funded affordable housing inventory represents a significant portion of the neighborhood's estimated housing stock. The long-term presence of affordable housing, spanning from 1989 to 2019, demonstrates an ongoing commitment to addressing low-income housing needs. The recent addition of a large LIHTC project coincides with demographic shifts and improvements in median income, potentially reflecting responsive housing policy. The diversity in unit types suggests an effort to accommodate various household sizes within the affordable housing framework.
