Building Beloved Community Committee Update: January 17, 2024
The Building Beloved Community Committee (BBCC) is well into the due diligence phase of our affordable housing initiative as we consider three (3) potential joint venture partners:
- NFP; Enterprise Community Partners.
- MHP (Montgomery Housing Partnership)
- AHC (Affordable Homes and Communities)
All three entities have been asked for in-depth responses to a series of follow-up questions such as…How much experience has your team had in developing housing co-located with houses of worship? And… How do you maximize chances that the design of an affordable housing project will meet the needs of future residents and other users of the site? The BBCC’s goal all along has been to find an experienced, affordable housing developer who shares our values, understands our vision, and can deliver a development that fits in harmony with the church’s program of worship, education, service, and fellowship. Those responses from the developers are due back to the BBCC January 19. Review, follow-up interviews, references, background research, etc. should wrap up by mid-February.
On the legal front, we have finalized language to create an LLC, the non-profit entity enabling the church to be part of a joint venture with our selected developer. Once the Operating Agreement and MD Articles of Organization are approved by the Leadership Council, we will file with the IRS and MD State. And we continue working to get a better understand the asset that IS Silver Spring United Methodist Church at 8900 Georgia Avenue. To that end, we have received an appraisal report and should soon have results from a title search on the property. We have also received two proposals in response to our capital needs assessment RFP. The committee will select a firm by the end of January. We are aiming to have that report, including a structural engineering report by spring.
The BBCC will update the congregation on the project, Sunday, March 10th at 11:30am. It is likely that by then we will be able to announce our intended development partner. Representatives of the UMC Baltimore-Washington Conference will also be invited to participate.