The historic Bon Air and Richmond Summit are getting a significant makeover, but will remain affordable housing.
The Augusta Commission authorized resolutions Tuesday approving Augusta Housing Authority to issue $28 million and $20 million, respectively, in tax-exempt revenue bonds for the renovations.
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Ryan Fuson, founder and CEO of Redwood Housing Partners, said the Seattle firm has brought in a new management company, Redwood Communities, to replace former manager MMS Group. There are now relocation agents on hand full time at both properties, he said.
About half the units at each complex have already been renovated and complaints are down, Fuson said.
“Once you start making investment in the properties, people start to self-police,” he said.
Conditions at the complexes on Walton Way and Broad Street have raised the ire of residents and elected officials alike for years. Doors left open, dilapidated and filthy interiors, crime and fire code violations have been among the issues.
After a 2022 walk-through at the Bon Air, Fire Chief Antonio Burden said inspectors had found some 18 life-threatening violations. The inspection was more than a year after Redwood acquired the two properties for $26 million.
Redwood missed out on low-income housing tax credits in its first application to the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, which authorizes state and federal tax credits, in 2022. But earlier this year Redwood was approved for the credits, Fuson said.
Both properties were built as luxury hotels in the 1920s. Since the early 1980s, they have functioned as unit-based Section 8 housing for people over age 62 or with disabilities.
The owners get a 20% historic tax credit for converting historic properties into affordable housing.
David Williams, bond counsel for Redwood, said the city government and housing authority bear no financial or legal responsibility for the project or bond payments.
Commissioner Jordan Johnson, who has worked with Redwood and Richmond Summit residents on improving conditions at the complex, said residents had seen their rents go up and asked if Redwood could hold another public hearing.
Fuson said the rents are calculated as 30% of a resident’s income.
Commissioner Catherine Smith McKnight, who has led an effort to improve conditions at the Bon Air and been frustrated by its progress, said Tuesday’s vote was good news for the projects, and the expected completion date is the end of 2025 or early 2026.
“It’s a good day for the Bon Air and Richmond Summit,” she said. “I am so glad to see the Bon Air getting renovations done while I am a commissioner. I will continue to stay on Redwood to make sure this gets completed.”
Mayor Garnett Johnson, who appoints members of the Housing Authority, applauded the development.
“It’s a great day that we are finally giving these people an opportunity to have a better place to live,” Johnson said.
Despite the upgrades, the Bon Air continues to lag in its HUD multifamily real estate assessment center score. Although it hasn’t been inspected since 2022, the Bon Air’s latest score was a 62c. The Richmond Summit’s latest score, in 2023, was a 94c. A 60 or higher is passing and the “c” means life- or health-threatening conditions were found.
