Phoenix City Council voted to enter into two purchase and sale agreements (PSAs) with local school districts in order to make ten acres of land available for more affordable housing units. The land will be purchased from the Isaac School District (4.56 acres for $3.1 million) and the Alhambra School District (5.54 acres for $2.3 million). In both cases, the City will then immediately sell the land in order for it to be developed into affordable, multi-family housing.
During the brief time Phoenix owns the property, the City will place a Land Use Restrictive Agreement (LURA) that requires the properties to be used for affordable housing for a minimum of 40 years.
Under Arizona law, a school district may only sell or lease school property to the State of Arizona, a county, a city, another school district or a tribal government agency required for a public purpose if the sale or lease of the property will not affect the normal operations of a school within the District. The City’s brief, yet crucial involvement in the PSA is a streamlined way to sell underutilized school district land while also speeding up affordable housing development. There will be no financial impact on the City.
“A recent housing needs assessment determined that Phoenix is short about 59,000 affordable and available units for low- and very-low income households at or below 50% of the area median income,” said Titus Mathew, Housing Director for the City. “These public-private partnerships secure land to help bridge that gap, and to create more housing options for residents at all income levels and family sizes.”
Under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s definition, ‘affordable housing’ refers to housing that costs no more than 30% of a household’s gross income. In the cases of these two agreements, the developed units on the Wild Rose Flats project (land from the Isaac School District) and on the Salamanca Square project (land from the Alhambra School District) will be priced to meet that standard for households that make 80% or less of the area median income.
In total, the transactions will result in 72 affordable units at Wild Rose Flats and 192 affordable units on the Salamanca Square. Construction on the sites is expected to begin in 2026.
