Massachusetts-based developer Dakota Partners says it will delay construction of its planned 108-unit Cedar Pointe apartment complex in Newington by a year, after failing to win $2 million worth of tax credits for the $32 million project.
Dakota told HBJ in November that it was planning a late summer 2020 groundbreaking, but this week, the company’s marketing director, Katie Cardillo, said in an email that construction had been pushed out to fall 2021.
The delay comes after a nine-month legal fight over Newington’s planning board rejecting Cedar Pointe over safety concerns. A judge sided with Dakota last year, overturning the denial.
Cardillo said the new timeline is unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The pandemic has affected it a little but production of affordable housing is viable under nearly all market conditions,” she said.
Dakota had applied for federal low-income tax credits for the project, but came up short in late March, when the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, which administers the program, did not select Cedar Pointe for an award.
There’s plenty of competition for the credits. CHFA, which had $8.8 million worth of credits to award, said it received 16 applications seeking a total of just over $23 million. Seven projects were ultimately selected.
Cardillo said Dakota — which has received low-income credits for other Connecticut projects in the past — intends to reapply for the funding this November.
