Council approves Trailview developer to sell 10 units at market rate
A house under construction in the Trailview subdivision, which was approved prior to the implementation of Whitefish's Legacy Homes Program. All of the homes in the subdivision are deed restricted as affordable and will not be impacted by House Bill 259. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
Unpredictable economics have left the developer of the Trailview subdivision struggling to continue to provide affordable housing units.
An amendment aiming to help the financial strain passed unanimously at the City Council meeting on Feb. 22. Councilors voted to allow developer Jerry Dunker to sell 10 units of the Trailview project at market rate. The affordable housing subdivision southwest of the intersection of Monegan and Voerman roads was first approved by the Council in May of 2018.
The original condition stated all of the 58 units would be affordable. Half of them would be deed-restricted based on income and half reserved for local workers.
Dunker gave an update on the development to council and explained the goal has always been for the development to have 100% deed-restricted units. Unforeseen economic difficulties have caused him to request this change to the original plan.
“Our goal from the start was 100% deed-restricted, it didn’t evolve to that, that was our goal. Unfortunately, there were economics we didn’t predict, I don’t think anyone did,” Dunker told the Council.
Due to the increased cost of construction materials and labor, supply chain delays, and material shortages, Dunker asked Council to approve an amendment that will allow him to sell 10 of the units at market price.
The average sale price of the first homes sold in Trailview was $315,000. Home prices in the Trailview subdivision went up 7.2% since 2020. For comparison, Dunker told the Council the prices of single-family homes in Whitefish went up 30% in 2021 bringing the average price to $1.3 million.
He went on to say there were no homes currently on the market priced under $500,000.
Council voted unanimously to allow the amendment with little further discussion. Dunker said people have contacted him and asked how they can help. He is investigating other options and will use the amendment to sell 10 units at a market rate only if he must.
“We’re not gonna stick these on the market right away and try and sell them,” he said. “I know we can, but we want to look at some options to keep these affordable.”
During the public hearing, Ben Johnson, a resident of the Trailview neighborhood, spoke in support of Dunker, saying, “aside from the federally supported low-income housing projects, Trailview has offered more deed-restricted units than any other development in Whitefish and is all privately funded.”
He added that Dunker is very responsive to the needs of the residents of Trailview and the community should be supportive of Dunker.
There are currently 22 homeowners in the subdivision and seven homes under contract and under construction; the development is at the halfway point.
The remainder of Trailview’s 58 units are expected to be completed in approximately two years.