Our vision for this site is rooted in building a replicable model for other cities to scale affordable, sustainable housing for its developing workforce. Thus, our vision for this development is to maximize the number of affordable units while still remaining financially viable.

Based on feedback from Community Engagement sessions in Ann Arbor, the option most highly favored by constituents for this site included 19 total units, which is what our team proposes. Furthermore, we propose that a 50/50 split between affordable and market rate units: 10 total affordable units and 9 total market rates units.

Additionally, our vision is rooted in creating a path to homeownership for low to moderate income individuals and families in Ann Arbor through our cooperative land trust model. Our vision is to operate a portion of the affordable units as rental conversions, meaning we will first lease the units and then provide residents the opportunity to move into homeownership of their unit as qualifications like credit scores improve alongside improved stability from a home like The Atrium. A similar model has been piloted in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

We propose 3 distinct unit types with the mix and specifications below. The number of market rate and affordable units per unit type is specified and reflects the overall 50/50 allocation.

• 3x 3BR, 1 Bath

  • 1000 sq ft

  • 2 affordable, 1 market rate

• 6x 2BR, 1 Bath

  • 820 sq ft

  • 3 affordable, 3 market rate

• 10x 1BR, 1 Bath

  • 620 sq ft

  • 5 affordable, 5 market rate

To inform our estimation of average rents for both affordable and market rate units, our team leveraged information from the Ann Arbor Housing Commission's presentation on the state of housing in Ann Arbor. The chart below contains information on average income in Ann Arbor, different rates of area median income, and levels of affordable monthly housing costs. These data inform our ultimate decisions for average rents.

The affordable unit monthly rents are informed by the most recent Ann Arbor Housing Needs Assessment, which indicated that there is demand for between 782-856 units at 31%-60% Area Median Income (AMI). Thus, our goal was to set a monthly rental level that met this need.

For market rate monthly rent, we conducted market research on average monthly rents in Ann Arbor for each unit type. Given our development's unique value proposition and amenities, we feel confident the market will support these rental levels.

Our unit sizes were informed by a set of assumptions, including data from the City of Ann Arbor.

• We began with a total 14,520 sq ft for development

• We utilized the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) of 93% from the provided specifications and recommendations for Ann Arbor, which leads to an estimated total floor area of 13,500 sq ft.

• Given the maximum height of 3 floors for the development, we calculated approximately 4,500 sq ft for the building base floor / footprint. That is also the square footage allotted for each floor.

• From these assumptions, we researched market averages of unit sizes across our unit selection and attempted to mirror that with the given space allocation.

• Based on community input, we assume 1 parking space per unit, which calculates to: 19 parking spots * 160 sq ft average = 3,040 sq ft allocated for parking

• The development will need an in/out road. We have assumed a 110 ft long parcel * 12 ft wide road * 2 = 2,640 sq ft

• Therefore, subtracting the total available developable space (14,250 sq ft) from parking (3,040 sq ft) and the in/out road (2,640) we are left with approximately 4,300 sq ft remaining for the many amenities that support our overall vision for The Atrium.