Fort Worth agencies take next step in acquiring Hillside Apartments

The Fort Worth Housing Authority and Downtown Fort Worth Initiatives Inc. have taken the next step toward acquiring and operating Hillside Apartments, the 172-unit, mixed-income property on the eastern edge of downtown.

By forming New 172 Hillside Partners LLC, the agencies created a joint venture to keep the property in local hands.

The property features duplex and triplex apartments built in 1995 by a local corporation to bring affordable housing to downtown. McCormack Baron Salazar of St. Louis developed the property.

When unveiled in 1997, the complex pioneered downtown residential development spearheaded by Downtown Fort Worth Initiatives, with support from the Bass family, the city of Fort Worth and local foundations and corporations.

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Organizations that originally helped the project reach fruition were Downtown Fort Worth Initiatives Inc.; Tandy Corp.; the city of Fort Worth; Justin Industries; Sid Richardson Foundation; and Bank of America.

Others were the Amon G. Carter Foundation; Overton Bank & Trust; Burnett-Tandy Foundation; Chase Texas; Burlington Northern Foundation; Wells Fargo Bank; and Davidson Family Charitable Foundation.

Rounding out the participants were Gainsco; the Ben E. Keith Foundation; Pier 1 Imports; Scott Foundation; Tarrant County; and Robert Bass.

Sixty percent of the apartment units are reserved for low-moderate income households, with net cash flow from Hillside operations used to help develop more affordable housing in the downtown area. The project maintains 98 percent occupancy, according to Downtown Fort Worth Inc.

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“The Fort Worth Housing Authority and Downtown Fort Worth Inc. have worked tirelessly to ensure the fruition of this project,” Naomi W. Byrne, president of the Fort Worth Housing Authority, in a news release.

“We are proud to continue our relationship with the Housing Authority,” said Jack Clark, chairman of Downtown Fort Worth Initiatives Inc.

Downtown Fort Worth Inc. is a non-profit organization whose stated mission is to help make downtown Fort Worth an attractive place in which to work, live and visit. More information is available at www.dfwi.org.

The Fort Worth Housing Authority develops, owns and operates housing that provides assistance to Fort Worth residents utilizing federal, state and local programs. It owns 1,002 public housing units, 2,998 affordable housing units and 525 market-rate units while administering more than 6,000 housing vouchers. More information is available at www.ftwha.org.