Schools to pursue affordable housing RFP

“The RFP will make sure we’re maximizing both the value of our land and use of our money”

By Kendra Walker 

The Gunnison Watershed School District board of directors has agreed to put out a Request for Proposals (RFP) this summer for potential affordable housing development plans on district properties in Gunnison.

The move was sparked by conversations over the past couple of months when the board was approached with an affordable housing proposal from the nonprofit Rural Homes Colorado, which develops affordable housing specifically to help support local workforce needs in rural communities.

Paul Major of Rural Homes proposed a partnership in which the school district would donate its Old Bus Barn parcel at N. 11th Street and Ohio Avenue and land by the Gunnison Community School at Arthur and 11th. Rural Homes would then build 20 deed restricted modular homes between the two sites. The organization would leverage state funding, including through Proposition 123, and factory-built duplex models to keep the house prices low. The school district would be able to purchase units as employee rentals while the remaining units would be sold publicly through a deed restricted lottery. Major estimated the home prices ranging from approximately $295,000 to $450,000 depending on the bedroom count. 

Rural Homes had requested a direct procurement process rather than the district sending out an RFP, as well as the ability to include GWSD in its letter of intent to the state due July 1 for Proposition 123 funding. The actual application to the state for Proposition 123 is August 15, and Rural Homes would like to submit an application that includes affordable housing projects for Gunnison, Grand Junction, Steamboat and Durango. 

However, during the June 23 board meeting, superintendent Dr. Leslie Nichols told the board she had had many conversations over the past several weeks with Rural Homes, administrators and local housing experts and resources, and she still had many questions. Nichols made the recommendation that the board send out an RFP to assure the district is getting the best value out of its properties. 

“A letter of intent feels premature from my perspective,” Nichols said. “I want to be sure we’re hitting the targets that we have for our own needs and then broader needs of the community when it comes to affordable housing because we have that opportunity with these well-situated parcels.”

Major agreed with Nichols’ recommendation to the board to move forward with an RFP. “We’re still very enthusiastic to work with you. We know this is new for the school district, you’re charting new territory. (Housing) is something that school districts will all have to deal with…it’s a new animal. I think taking the time to really study it and understand it and what you have to offer and what you need is critical.”

Major said ideally the board would put out an RFP as soon as possible so that Rural Homes, along with any other developers applying for Proposition 123 funding, could respond to the district’s RFP in time for the state’s August 15 deadline, lock in this year’s pricing and complete the project next year. He also stressed the uncertainties with what next year’s funding will look like, along with rising construction costs, tariffs and other potential inflation risks. 

 “You don’t have to select anybody. You don’t have to select us, but you miss an opportunity for at least a year if you don’t lean in quickly,” he said. “Because you need housing now and so does the community. We don’t need more studies, we don’t need more analysis, we need to actually build the homes.”

Board member Katya Schloesser said the process has felt a bit rushed with this summer’s deadline pressures. She said she understood the urgency to get folks in houses, but also expressed her desire for the board to do its due diligence to make the right decision for the district. 

“Katya, I share your concern that this process has seemed rushed,” said board president Tyler Martineau. “Granted, the urgency about housing is there, but I’m reluctant to approve a letter of intent when the level of detail of information that we’ve had from Rural Homes is really extremely preliminary.”

Major said there is approximately $24,000,000 available for the scattered site funding application due August 15. “And we expect to compete for just under half of that, and to hopefully be successful,” he said. “We’ve got the track record to deliver on what the state is asking for. There’s not many, if any, developers in the state that could say that. Of all of the developers that received state awards in 2023, we were the only developer that actually built and finished their project in 2024.”

Several members of the board expressed feeling uncomfortable with signing a letter of intent with Rural Homes by July 1 while still having more questions for Morgan and his team, let alone while pursuing an RFP. After much deliberation regarding the board acting with integrity on its word versus the risk of missing out on this year’s funding opportunities, Morgan told the board that a letter of intent was not a necessary component.

“I would just put it aside and stay solely focused on the RFP to get that done and give plenty of bandwidth for people to respond by the August deadline and let the process run so you can get the answers you need,” he said. “What we would need is the ability to tell the state that we have responded to an RFP issued by the school district, and we have submitted that application.”

“I do support the RFP, I think it’s the most prudent thing to do with our school resources,” said board member Mark VanderVeer. “I really appreciate what Rural Homes has offered in a total solution. I think the RFP will make sure we’re maximizing both the value of our land and use of our money.” He suggested the board send out an RFP by July 1 so the board would have enough time to review and make a decision in August before the state funding deadline for applications. “If we’re not comfortable at that point, we can say we’re pushing it out a year. But I’d hate to miss the opportunity of getting something in place for 2026 built. At least we made an attempt to move forward.”

Nichols told the board she had acquired several sample RFPs and can work with local housing resources. She said it would have to get done this week because she is going to be on vacation for the next two weeks. “I want to move forward with this,” she said. “I’m optimistic it could get done this week. I’m motivated.” 

“I hope that what comes out of this is that it does spark real action around affordable housing and that we do put together an RFP and have a solid timeline,” said Martineau. 

“It’s exciting to think about moving the needle in housing a little bit,” said board member Anne Brookhart. “We’ve been thinking about it for a long time. This momentum that we have right now with this board and what we’ve learned in this last month is motivating.”

In the spirit of keeping the momentum going, the board directed Nichols to move forward with putting together an RFP for affordable housing development on the school district’s parcels in Gunnison.