NEW ALBANY — A nonbinding resolution opposing two low-income housing developments will be up for a vote this evening when the New Albany City Council convenes.

Though the resolution, sponsored by Councilman Kevin Zurschmiede, calls for the city to buck the expansion of low income housing in general, it cites two specific developments which are up for consideration for tax credits by the state.

One is the proposed 74-unit Legacy at Riverside project, which would occupy the former Reisz Furniture building along Main Street and offer affordable senior living. The second development would be dubbed Summit Springs, and would feature construction of 104 affordable housing units near the intersection of Daisy Lane and State Street.

Zurschmiede said the city, primarily through the New Albany Housing Authority, has an abundance of low-income lodging options. Instead of bringing more of the same, Zurschmiede said the city should be concentrated on building a more diverse housing stock including upscale homes.

“The vast majority of people feel the city provides enough low-income housing,” he said.  

The developments are not sponsored by the New Albany Housing Authority, as Summit Springs is backed by the Louisville firm LDG. Age would not factor into residency at Summit Springs, but tenants would have to make 60 percent of the Area Median Income, or AMI, to qualify for a unit.

The Sterling Group is the developer in charge of the Legacy at Riverside, as planners for both projects are hoping to be awarded a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development tax credit.

The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, or IHCDA, is slated to weigh proposals from the developers for the low-income tax credits during its Feb. 23 meeting.

If it passes, the resolution asks IHCDA to consider the council’s objection to the developments.

“We have so many vacant homes, lets fill them” instead, Council President Diane McCartin-Benedetti said.

Zurschmiede added the city needs to pursue other housing options in order to better serve the community.

“Hopefully the mayor will see it that way and send a letter [to IHCDA] also,” he said.

Mayor Jeff Gahan said Saturday his administration is aware of the council proposal, and is reviewing the measure in hopes of being able to provide an opinion on the matter possibly today.

If approved, the measure will contradict a resolution approved by the New Albany Redevelopment Commission last year. In October, the commission endorsed the Legacy at Riverside project, though it did decline to support Summit Springs in its pursuit of a low-income tax credit.

Zurschmiede was a member of the redevelopment commission at the time the votes were taken.

During the October meeting, The Sterling Group’s Director of Development John VanMeter said the Reisz building would be rehabilitated and a four story structure added to house the development.

“There’s certainly a growing demand for senior housing,” he said.

The developers were seeking the endorsement of the redevelopment commission for their projects so they could add points to their HUD tax credit applications.

Public and low-income housing are key issues for the city. New Albany has one of the largest stocks of public housing per capita in Indiana.

“I think it really taxes our public services,” Zurschmiede said.

But he added he supports a New Albany Housing Authority plan to break up some of the developments so there’s less continuos public housing sites in the city.

He said he wants the council and administration to have a better working relationship with the housing authority, which has its own board and executive director.

“I personally would like to see a lot more interaction,” Zurschmiede said.

Councilman John Gonder said he supports a system that would allow the city to cap credits for low-income housing and give preference to the New Albany Housing Authority.

He conceded his wife does sit on the housing authority board, but believes the city should give favor to the entity when it comes to low-income lodging because it has to meet federal guidelines.

“We’ve got a very functional housing authority here with [Executive Director] Bob Lane,” Gonder said. “The favored option should be to go through the housing authority, because those are the people that follow the federal regulations and have to meet the highest standards of how housing is offered to the public.”