Settlement Agreement Reached to Preserve Subsidized Housing

In an innovative settlement finalized last month, all 201 units of Morningside I, a subsidized Chicago senior residence, will be preserved and the site’s Section 8 contract will be maintained for several years. Shriver Center attorneys spearheaded this class action lawsuit against the Moody Bible Institute.

Last fall, the Shriver Center challenged the school’s unlawful conversion of the subsidized senior housing into student dormitories. Morningside I originally provided 201 units of affordable housing for low-income seniors. The suit was filed on behalf of current residents, applicants on the waiting list, and the Jane Addams Senior Caucus, a 30-year-old Chicago nonprofit organization.

Pursuant to Section 8(bb) of the U.S. Housing Act, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will permit the Moody Bible Institute to split the Section 8 contract into two contracts. Residents who elect to remain at Morningside are guaranteed project-based units until 2018. Residents who choose to move to nearby Maple Pointe Apartments will have project-based Section 8 housing until 2033.

Morningside is one of the first cases in which advocates persuaded HUD to split a Section 8 contract to maintain the same number of subsidized units, and it opens up possibilities for preserving more affordable housing in the future.

For more information, contact Kate Walz.