Eagle County Preserves 120 Income-Restricted Homes in Eagle Villas

Aspen —The bright orange spiral of a slide glistens in the sun behind the leasing office at Eagle Villas. For five children, ages 3 to 12, it’s a place where they bike to school when it’s warm and the bus drops them off out front. It’s a neighborhood where friends are nonstop, and the idea of leaving feels like a loss before it even happens.

That sense of impending displacement nearly became reality for the 120 households at this complex on Nogal Road in Eagle. Built in two phases in 1994 and 196, Eagle Villas is the largest income-restricted housing property in the town. Units are reserved for households earning roughly 45% to 60% of the area median income. For a family of four, that translates to an annual income between $62,415 and $83,229. On paper, it’s a stable arrangement. In practice, the stability was hanging by a thread because the affordability restrictions were approaching expiration, and the complex was listed for sale on the open market.

Julieth Kennedy, a resident with five children, felt the pressure acutely. In 2023, as the clock ticked down on the property’s protected status, she began searching for housing in Aurora. It wasn’t a preference; it was a necessity. She knew there was nothing she could afford in Eagle if the restrictions lapsed. Moving would have meant more than just a change of address. Kennedy’s mother, her children’s paternal grandparents, and aunts live nearby and help with childcare. Her kids attend school up the hill behind the complex. As she noted, it would have been depressing for the children and hard on them if they’d had to move.

The turning point came when Ulysses Development Group (UDG), a Denver-based affordable-housing developer, stepped in. UDG acquired Eagle Villas in 2024. Working with the Eagle County Housing and Development Authority and the state, they put together a financing package to preserve the property as income-restricted housing and renovate all 120 apartments. This public-private partnership effectively bought time and secured the future of the complex.

Tori Franks, Eagle County’s resiliency director, highlighted why this preservation was critical. She noted that the cost of losing low-income units in a high-cost community is far greater than the cost of replacing them. The community costs include displacement, job loss, employers needing to recruit new employees, children missing school due to relocation, and social infrastructure loss. Kennedy’s situation exemplified these risks: losing her home would have severed the childcare support network and disrupted her children’s schooling.

Let’s do the math on the stakes. Without the intervention, 120 households facing potential displacement in a high-cost market. With the deal, those 120 units remain income-restricted, and the apartments undergo renovation. The financial mechanism wasn’t just a purchase; it was a restructuring of the property’s long-term affordability status. By acquiring the complex and securing new financing tied to income restrictions, UDG and the public partners ensured that the affordability promise didn’t expire with the original developers’ timeline.

The practical bottom line for locals is clear: 120 families in Eagle kept their homes, their schools, and their community ties intact. The renovation ensures the physical assets match the financial investment. For renters in the valley, this case study proves that preserving existing affordable housing is a viable alternative to displacement, provided the public and private sectors can align on financing. The playground slide still glistens in the sun, but now it does so with a solid financial foundation beneath it.