Driggs' Fox Creek Place Apartments Make History in Teton County

DRIGGS - A $2.7 million, 32-unit apartment complex was dedicated in Driggs his week, the Idaho Housing and Finance Association announced. Fox Creek Place-which was placed in service last November-is the first affordable development to be completed in the city since 1994, despite increasing growth in Teton County. 

Driggs Mayor Lou Christensen and representatives from the Teton County Commission, Teton County Planning and Zoning Commission and Arave Construction Company joined IHFA and The Housing Company at the informal dedication ceremony, which included tours of the development.

Since 1990, Teton County has experienced five to six percent growth. With land and building costs on the rise, many of those employed in the area were forced to share housing with others, live in sub-standard or inadequate housing, or hold more than one job in order to afford the limited housing available. 

Testimony given by Driggs' city manager during the 1997 Governor's Affordable Housing Task Force public hearings prompted The Housing Company to investigate potential development sites to respond to Driggs' affordable housing needs. The Housing Company is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that creates perpetually affordable rental housing through the development and acquisition of new or existing rental housing.

Fox Creek Place-which was developed through an agreement between The Housing Company and Arave Construction Company of Blackfoot-is owned by Teton Development Limited Partnership. Funding for the development includes $1.28 million from Key Community Development Corporation, a $740,000 loan from IHFA's Affordable Housing Investment Trust Fund, $500,000 in HOME Program funds (a federal program administered by IHFA on behalf of the state), and general partner equity amounting $180,000.

The apartment complex features two and three-bedroom, 1,200-square-foot apartments complete with two bathrooms, washer/dryer hookups, a single-car garage with each unit and a playground. Seven of them rent at the going market rate, with the remaining 24 affordable for low-income residents.

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The Idaho Housing and Finance Association, a financial services and housing organization, provides funding for affordable housing in Idaho communities where they are most needed and when it is economically feasible. IHFA uses no state funds or state employees to support its operations. For more information, visit our Web site at www.ihfa.org.