6/12/2023 0 Comments Sparkbox ark![]() The Steel + Spark project on Roosevelt Row will provide five units, each with the capacity to house one or two people. Census Bureau.Īfter rents in metro Phoenix shot up 30 percent in 2021, the Arizona Department of Housing says 270,000 new housing units are needed to meet demand. That's double Arizona’s median income, according to the U.S. But Stark’s most recent venture, IDA on McKinley, offered monthly rental rates for more basic one-bedroom container apartments starting at $1,700 when it opened earlier this year.Īssuming the standard that rent shouldn’t exceed one-third of a person’s income, a renter would need an annual salary of at least $61,200 per year to afford $1,700 a month in rent. The company hasn't announced the selling price of the units. For every 100 low-income families in the state, just 26 affordable home options are available, according to the study. ![]() Arizona ranks in the bottom five among all states for affordable housing, according to an April 2022 study from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. “With the extreme statewide housing shortage, ADOH has prioritized quick-occupancy, sustainable solutions for housing.”īut the need isn’t just for housing units in general - it’s for affordable housing units. “We're still in discussion about where the units will go, but they will be used for housing the homeless,” Cherry said. Then, the model homes will be moved to an undisclosed location in the Valley where they will serve as housing for unsheltered people. The exhibition will be on display until June. In December, the Phoenix City Council approved a $3 million contract for the company to install four refurbished 40-foot shipping containers that will house up to 20 people as part of a larger development in southwest Phoenix to provide housing for homeless people, according to city documents and the Arizona Republic. The grant is part of at least $4.2 million in public funds Steel + Spark has received in recent months. “We hope to spread awareness and help advance the legislation and zoning ordinances to expedite this type of housing.” “Our hope is to demonstrate an innovative sustainable smart solution to increase housing quickly,” said Brian Stark, who along with Kathleen Santin co-owns both Steel + Spark and Local Studio, a container home developer in Phoenix. The units will be staged with boxed plants and outdoor entertainment space. The Roosevelt Row project will feature two studio apartments and three one-bedroom apartments, each fully furnished and self-powered with rooftop solar panels. “This is a local company with an excellent track record of developing innovative container housing,” Dave Cherry, a spokesperson for the state housing department, told Phoenix New Times. The grant is part of $60 million the state legislature appropriated to the Housing Trust Fund in 2022, according to the housing department. The project is funded with a $1.2 million grant from the Arizona Department of Housing. The shipping container homes, which the developer calls SparkBoxes, can be used for many purposes, including as accessory dwelling units, single-family housing, and transitional housing for the unsheltered. ![]() But in a matter of weeks, Phoenix-based metal fabricator Steel + Spark will unveil the exhibition and offer daily tours in an effort to sell more homes to customers and raise awareness about sustainable living. The city-owned land near Second and Roosevelt streets has sat unoccupied for more than 15 years, save for a short-lived temporary parking project in 2016. In late January, five model homes built from shipping containers will be installed along flourishing Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix. Local housing experts are mixed on whether the new project will catapult large-scale development of quick-occupancy modular homes as well as on the impact a private developer that prides itself on “exquisite downtown Phoenix living” can have on low-income families in need of affordable housing. But first, it will help a private corporation make a buck. A shipping container model home exhibition on Roosevelt Row, funded with $1.2 million in public funds, will eventually be used to house unsheltered people in Phoenix.
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