by Ashley Lodato, originally published by Methow Valley News, 05/25/23

The Methow Housing Trust  has broken ground and begun construction in their next Twisp neighborhood, which will eventually add 10 single-family homes ranging in size from one to four bedrooms to the trust’s inventory of permanently affordable, quality homes for full-time residents who make between 60-150% of area median income.

The Evergreen Loop, which was purchased by the Methow Housing Trust from Hank and Judy Konrad in August 2022, is located at the end of Riverside Avenue, with convenient access to amenities in Twisp.

Project Manager Joel Reid said, “We are excited to build more homes in Twisp and join the Riverside Avenue neighborhood; we think it will be a great spot for more housing for local families. We are also working with the Town in hopes of collaborating on an access trail that would connect Riverside Ave to Twisp-Airport Road to provide a connection between neighborhoods and the Twisp Sports Complex.”

Since 2018 MHT has completed 37 permanently affordable single-family homes: 13 in Twisp’s Canyon Street neighborhood, eight at the McKinney Ridge neighborhood near Mazama, and 16 in Cascade Meadows South, in Winthrop. All 10 homes in Evergreen Loop are being built by Big Picture Construction within the next 18 months, with expected sales beginning at the end of 2023.

When that neighborhood is complete, the housing trust will turn its attention to the Cascade Meadows North neighborhood in Winthrop, which will include 26 single-family homes and 22 affordable rental units developed by the Housing Authority of Okanogan County.

“Our ability to meet [the] need for stable, attainable housing has been enabled by continued community investment toward securing land, and the money required to offset the difference between the actual cost to build, and what our local wage earners can afford” said Executive Director Danica Ready.

For more information visit www.methowhousingtrust.org.