The Greater Albuquerque Housing Partnership is developing a new, affordable infill project in the SE Heights, one of three new projects in the nonprofit developer's pipeline.

The model home for the $2.7 million development at Wellesley Drive and Kathryn Avenue, called Sunport Town Homes, is nearing completion and the nonprofit will take delivery on it soon, says Louis Kolker, executive director of the Housing Partnership, which acquired the site overlooking the Puerto del Sol Golf Course. The 18 townhomes will have 1,380 square feet of space with three bedrooms and 2.5 baths and views to the West Mesa. They are priced at $137,900.

Like previous developments the group has done, this one follows many design guidelines for traditional neighborhoods that emphasize "community policing" and pedestrian activity, Kolker says. Front windows face the street and there are front porches. The garage is detached at the back of the home, and there are small patio areas.

"Most developers, if they were going to do a similar layout, would have had a front car garage on homes and curb cuts every 13 feet," he says. "That doesn't encourage pedestrian activity."

The group also plans to incorporate passive solar design into the homes, which will use the sun's energy to enhance heating and cooling systems. Kolker says his organization is getting a number of calls from potential buyers who have seen the model home under construction. The neighborhood is borderline, Kolker says. "We think 18 new townhomes will help that neighborhood come up rather than coming down further," he says. "We really thought that was a beautiful site."

Isaac Benton is the architect and worked from designs and floorplans created by the Housing Partnership. Janstar Construction is the contractor for phase one, during which the first six townhomes will be built.

Buyers for homes developed by the Greater Albuquerque Housing Partnership must make no more than 80 percent of the area's median income. These levels are set each year by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The 2004 levels were about $30,350 for a single buyer and $43,350 for a family of four. The partnership acquired the land using federal HOME funds, which flow from HUD through the city of Albuquerque. The city then channels the funds to nonprofit developers. The partnership provides financial help through soft second mortgages, which are based on a family's financial need, and provides counseling on homebuying and homeownership.

This is one of three developments the Greater Albuquerque Housing Partnership is working on. The group, which formed as a community housing development corporation in 1993, has placed families in 53 homes and is going through a "learning curve," Kolker says, as it grows from producing 10 homes a year to 20 or 30. The partnership started construction in April 2004 on El Porvenir Homes, a 13-home development in the Martineztown/Santa Barbara neighborhood and is moving forward with its plans for its Barelas Homes project, which is scheduled to start construction in April 2005.

The $3 million Barelas development will be the first mixed-income project for the partnership. Located near the old railyards, the site is slated to have 12 affordable units that will be Victorian in appearance and 10 market-rate units whose design will reflect the industrial character of the railyard. There are a number of plans in play for redeveloping the railyards, including a film studio, a transportation museum, and a convention facility.

"There is a lot of speculation around Downtown now," Kolker says. "That kind of development in and around Downtown is wonderful and revitalizes the larger community, but in doing that you have to be cautious not to have older traditional neighborhoods overrun."

This kind of development can help protect these older neighborhoods, he says. "Affordable housing is part of our mission, but the revitalization of older neighborhoods is of equal value to us."

The target markets for the partnership's projects are typically existing residents who don't want to move out of a community, but are seeking new housing opportunities. Kolker says there is a perception among some that affordable housing means giving people something for free. But buyers in his group's program must be employed, have two years of job history and certain income levels.