Delta’s $14 Million Affordable Housing Project Costs $1.18 Million Per Unit

A $14 million project. Twelve units.

That’s the headline for the new affordable housing development in Delta. But if you read the fine print, the numbers get fuzzy. The city claims it’s solving the housing crisis. The developers claim it’s a public-private partnership. The locals claim they’re still waiting for the ground to break.

Let’s do the math. The total cost is $14.2 million. That’s what Delta County spends on road maintenance in a year. It’s also roughly what the entire municipal budget for the next three months looks like. And for that price, we get twelve single-family homes. That’s $1.18 million per house. In a town where the median home price hovers around $450,000, that’s not affordable housing. That’s a luxury tax on density.

The project sits on 5 acres off Highway 92. The land was cheap. The infrastructure is cheap. The concrete is cheap. What’s expensive is the bureaucracy.

Here’s the reality on the ground. The developers, Summit Group, promised these units would go to families making 80% of the area median income. That’s $65,000 a year for a household of four. Sounds good. Until you look at the eligibility criteria. The units are restricted for 30 years. After that? The market takes over. The city gets to keep the property, but the affordability cap lifts. We’re building a temporary solution for a permanent problem.

The city council approved the zoning variance last Tuesday. No debate. No dissent. Just a stamp. They called it “Pragmatic Patriotism” in the press release. I call it a land grab.

The infrastructure costs are where the real story hides. The project requires a new water line extension. That’s $2.4 million. A new sewer hook-up. $1.1 million. And the roads? They’re widening the access road to accommodate the increased traffic. That’s another $800,000. All of it paid for by the developer, but guess who guarantees the loan? The local bank. Guess who backs the tax increment financing? You.

The developer, Summit Group, says the project will create 12 jobs during construction. That’s it. Twelve. For a $14 million investment. That’s not an economic engine. That’s a trickle.

The city’s claim is that this will “stimulate growth.” But growth in what? Property values? Maybe. For the five nearby lots that sold last week for $500,000. For the rest of us? We’re looking at higher water bills. Higher sewer fees. More traffic on Highway 92 during rush hour.

The zoning variance was a Class C. That means it’s discretionary. The council could have said no. They didn’t. They cited “state mandates” and “housing shortages.” The state mandate is a suggestion. The housing shortage is a choice. We could have built 50 units for the same price if we hadn’t insisted on a single-family zoning overlay. But we did. We wanted character. We wanted “traditional aesthetics.” That cost us $1.18 million per house.

The project breaks ground in April. Completion is slated for late 2025. By then, the inflation adjustment will have eaten another 10% off the budget. The $14 million will be $15.4 million. And the twelve families who move in will be paying $2,200 a month in rent. That’s not affordable. That’s a gamble.

The city council member who championed the project, Sarah Jenkins, says it’s “a step forward.” It is. A step toward higher taxes. A step toward more traffic. A step toward a housing model that works for developers, not locals.

The bottom line? You’re paying $14 million for twelve homes. That’s the cost of doing business in Delta. It’s not a crisis. It’s a business model. And it’s working for Summit Group.