Denver will see 128 more affordable housing units constructed after the Denver City Council approved a $5.35 million loan with Second Chance Center on Tuesday.

The money will come from two sources: The voter-approved homelessness resolution fund and the affordable housing fund overseen by the Department of Housing Stability. 

The homelessness resolution fund came to be in 2020 and has been filled via a 0.25% sales tax increase. It’s estimated to generate abut $40 million annually, according to a 2021 report. The affordable housing fund was created in 2016 and is funded through property taxes, a linkage fee, sales taxes on marijuana sales and the general fund. The city estimates it produces about $30 million annually.

Denver’s strategy to tackle the affordable housing crisis this year includes up to $100 million in city, state and federal funding, according to previous Denver Gazette reporting. This money will play into one of Mayor Mike Johnston’s citywide goals, called “Affordable Denver,” which seeks to develop and preserve 3,000 units of affordable housing.

The new construction will be called the Residences on Acoma. It will feature 128 units, 60 of which are available to residents making 30% of the area median income (AMI). All 60 are permanent supportive housing units, which focus on people exiting or at risk of homelessness who have been involved in the justice system, according to city documents.

Another 68 units will be available to those making 60% AMI.

The Residences on Acoma will be primarily one-bedroom apartments, but a total of seven two-bedroom apartments will also be available.

The loan agreement was approved unanimously on the consent agenda.

The Denver City Council also approved the naming of a new park – Bethesda Park – near Denver Academy. The park’s future address is 4301 E. Iliff Ave., though construction won’t begin until next year, city officials said.

Former Councilwoman Kendra Black, who represented District 4, spoke in support of naming the park Bethesda Park during a public hearing Tuesday night. 

“This is a very densely populated neighborhood, with much more density coming in every year,” she said. “It is only 1.9 acres so it will be a small park but it is a park nevertheless.”

The land for the park was purchased in 2019, while Black was still serving on the council. 

Black praised the decision-making process, which she said was a tremendous community driven effort. The naming committee had seven top names, but ultimately chose Bethesda Park. When translated from Hebrew, Bethesda means “house or place of mercy,” which Black thought was appropriate given the history of the land. 

The park sits nearby the former home of the Bethesda Tuberculosis Sanatorium, which was in operation from 1910 to 1950. Once TB was no longer a major health threat, the sanatorium was “reinvented” into the Bethesda mental health hospital, according to the presentation given to the council.

Denver Academy now calls the area home.  

Much work still needs to be done, and design and construction work likely won’t begin until next year, city officials said. Black, excited to see the project coming to fruition, had one last thing to say to the council: 

“If there’s anything you can to do help Denver Parks and Rec hurry up and build the park, the community would be very appreciative,” she said.