Demand Strong for Multifamily Community Serving Workforce in North Fort Worth Job Center
FORT WORTH, Texas, June 16, 2021 – Fort Worth Housing Solutions, the public housing authority for the nation’s 12th largest city, celebrated the grand opening today of The Holston, a luxury, mixed-income development serving residents in the thriving Alliance Corridor with nationally recognized development partner AMTEX and Greystar, a global rental housing company.
The 264-unit property offers high-end amenities in a resort-style community off Texas 170 and Keller Haslet Road in an area near major distribution centers for companies like General Motors, BEHR, Facebook and UPS and the high-performing Northwest Independent School District. It is managed by Greystar, a global leader in the rental housing sector.
Half of the Holston’s one-, two- and three-bedroom units will be leased at market rate; the other half will be available to households earning 80 percent or less of the Area Median Income. In 2021, an individual earning $45,300 or less a year meets the 80 percent threshold. A three-person household earning $58,200 or less would also qualify for the workforce rate.
Barbara Holston
The Holston is named in honor of Barbara Holston, who served as president of the Fort Worth Housing Authority from 1993 to 2014. Ms. Holston is credited with re-positioning the agency that later became Fort Worth Housing Solutions from a traditional public housing model to its current mission of developing mixed-income residential properties in high opportunity areas throughout Fort Worth and de-concentrating poverty in the process.
“We are thrilled to celebrate The Holston and the legacy of Barbara Holston with today’s grand opening event,” said Mary-Margaret Lemons, Fort Worth Housing Solutions president since 2017. “Ms. Holston was an advocate for self-sufficiency who encouraged our residents to participate in programs designed to help them succeed. It is fitting to name such a beautiful property in one of our city’s hottest job centers for her.”
AMTEX President Arjun Nagarkatti noted that The Holston already is 90 percent leased with the first residents signing on in December. The property is the first of two phases of mixed-income housing at Keller Haslet and Texas 170.
Construction is expected to begin on an adjacent second phase, to be named The Opal, in fall 2021 or early 2022. The Opal will feature 339 units with a similar 50-50 split of market-rate and workforce-rate apartments. Construction is scheduled to take about 24 months with leasing to begin in 2023.
“We are elated with the success of The Holston – our fifth new apartment community collaboration with Fort Worth Housing Solutions,” Nagarkatti said. “By 2023, we look forward to building on the success of The Holston by also completing The Holston’s sister community — The Opal — that will provide 339 more market-rate and workforce-rate apartments to the Fort Worth residential market.”
Victoria Morgan, Greystar’s senior director for the Central North region said: “We are extremely excited about the success of The Holston’s lease-up. In short order the Greystar team has been able to partner with both Fort Worth Housing Solutions and AMTEX to deliver incredible results through operational excellence. We believe in the product, the demand for both workforce and market-rate rental housing. and we have exceeded the absorption schedule while positioning The Holston as a leader in the market.”
Leasing information is available at https://liveholston.com/.
Ms. Holston was known as a supportive leader and mentor who encouraged housing program participants to seek education and training and work toward self-sufficiency. She grew up in Birmingham, Ala., and as a 16-year-old high school student participated in the April 1963 segregation protests at the urging of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. For that, she and a friend were jailed with many other young people.
She graduated from high school that year and earned her undergraduate degree in sociology at age 20 from Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Holston landed her first job with the Los Angeles City Housing Authority and served in a variety of roles for more than two decades.
Michael Hanratty, then executive director for the Fort Worth Housing Authority, recruited Holston to Texas in 1990 and named her Deputy Director. When he died unexpectedly the next year, she was promoted to the agency’s top post.
“When I think of all the people who became self-sufficient over the years and were able to buy homes or get a college degree, those were all great things to witness,” said Holston, who lives in Fort Worth. “To see where Fort Worth Housing Solutions is today and consider where we started is very gratifying.”
View a photo gallery of the grand opening event at https://flic.kr/s/aHsmW1ZDfr.
About Fort Worth Housing Solutions
Fort Worth Housing Solutions provides mixed-income rental and home ownership opportunities that provide the foundation to improve lives. The agency was established in 1938 to provide decent, safe housing for low- to moderate-income residents. Today, the FWHS portfolio includes 40 properties with almost 6,700 affordable units. The agency manages Housing Choice Vouchers that help families and individuals cover rental costs. FWHS works closely with numerous partners to promote economic independence and positive change in the lives of the more than 28,000 individuals we serve on a daily basis. Learn more at www.fwhs.org.
About AMTEX Development, LLC
AMTEX Development, LLC, is a Dallas-based, real estate development company that develops apartment homes in Texas and is part of the AMCAL Group of Companies. Founded in 1978, the AMCAL Group of Companies is one of the nation’s leading housing development companies, developing quality rental and ownership residential properties throughout California, Texas and Washington, including affordable housing, luxury apartment housing and student housing. The company has developed more than $2.5 billion in multifamily housing projects consisting of more than 10,000 apartment homes and is currently listed sixth on Affordable Housing Finance Magazine’s list of top developers. The organization’s mission is to improve the lives of residents and enhance their futures. Visit www.amcalhousing.com to learn more.
About Greystar
Greystar is a leading, fully integrated, global real estate company offering expertise in investment management, development and management of rental housing properties. Headquartered in Charleston, S.C., Greystar manages and operates more than $220 billion of real estate in nearly 200 markets with offices throughout the United States, Europe, South America and the Asia-Pacific region. Greystar is the largest operator of apartments in the United States, managing about 729,000 units and beds, and has a robust institutional investment management platform with $39.8 billion in assets under management, including over $18.3 billion of assets under development. Greystar was founded by Bob Faith in 1993 with the intent to become a provider of world-class service in the rental residential real estate business. Learn more at www.greystar.com.
Media contact:
Jennifer Gordon
jgordon@amcalhousing.com
818-706-0694 x169
###
