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The Low Income Housing Institute invites you to the
Grand Opening Ceremony for:
Billy Frank Jr. Place
43 affordable apartments in downtown Olympia
Thursday June 1st, 2017, 2:00pm
The Low Income Housing Institute invites you to attend the grand opening ceremony for Billy Frank Jr. Place on Thursday June 1st, 2017, 2:00pm at 318 State Avenue NE, Olympia.
Speakers at the grand opening will include: Willie Frank, Nisqually Tribal Chairman Farron McCloud, Congressman Denny Heck, House Speaker Frank Chopp, Rep. Beth Doglio, Olympia Mayor Pro Tem Nathaniel Jones, Phil Porter of Enterprise, LIHI Executive Director Sharon Lee, and others. Tours of the building will begin at 1:30pm.
The building is named in honor of Native American environmental leader and treaty rights activist Billy Frank Jr., known for his grassroots campaign for tribal fishing rights in Washington. He was a member of the Nisqually Tribe. Frank was chairman of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission for 25 years until his passing in 2014. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.
Billy Frank Jr. Place provides 43 units of affordable housing for low-income residents in a new, energy efficient 4-story building in downtown Olympia. The project serves homeless veterans, homeless young adults (age 18-24), disabled individuals and other members of the community. There are 15 studios, 22 one-bedrooms and 6 two-bedrooms.
The project is just a block from the Olympia Transit Center, near parks, schools, shopping, jobs, The Olympia Center, and the city's vibrant waterfront. Billy Frank Jr. Place includes amenities and services to help tenants to become more self-sufficient. The building includes a community room, classroom, kitchen, computer lab, outdoor seating and gardening areas, and counseling space for case management staff. One apartment houses an on-site staff person.
Bumgardner Architects designed the project and Pavilion Construction is the general contractor.
Thanks to the City of Olympia, LIHI acquired the land at a reduced cost. The project is financed with funding from the Washington State Housing Trust Fund, HUD, Low Income Housing Tax Credits from Enterprise and the Washington State Housing Finance Commission, a grant from The Employees Community Fund of Boeing, a grant from the Home Depot Foundation, and construction financing from Heritage Bank, which is headquartered in Olympia.
Thanks for support from: Housing Authority of Thurston County in assisting veterans and other homeless households pay their rent at Billy Frank Jr. Place; Community Youth Resources for providing services and rent subsidies for homeless young adults; and State Dept. of Commerce and the 811 Program for rental support for disabled households.
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