The Acoma Pueblo of New Mexico has earned the reputation as the oldest continually inhabited community in North America for its “Sky City,” a mesa-top village of more than 250 dwellings that were built on a 367-foot sandstone bluff starting in 1150 A.D.
It is one of only a few Native American sites to be designated on the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and it has been captivating to visit and reflect on the community’s thousand years of housing and culture.
The Pueblo of Acoma Housing Authority (PAHA) will link this history and culture to the present by building 30 new affordable homes. I am elated to announce PAHA’s project, PAHA LIHTC Homes #1, recently received an award of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs) from the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority!
The competition in New Mexico is notoriously fierce, and this year was no exception: PAHA’s project was awarded in a round with only a 30 percent success rate! With this allocation, the housing authority will build 30 new units, a new community building, and an outdoor recreation area on the Acoma Indian Reservation.
The new homes will be located about 10 miles from the historic village in a residential neighborhood within walking distance of many amenities and services. The project consists of three multifamily buildings, two of which will contain 12 units, and one that will contain six units.
The new 1,355-square-foot community building is centrally located and will include a large meeting room and kitchen. It will host programs such as quarterly financial literacy trainings at no cost to the residents.
Outside the community building, residents will have access to a picnic pavilion, bike and walking path, playground and recreation space, and a full-court basketball court.
Here are beautiful renderings from our design team, Travois Design & Construction Services, the architects for the project. We are extremely proud that this project is moving forward and look forward to helping it through closing, construction, rent-up and the compliance period.
For more information on Sky City, visit the Sky City Cultural center and Haak’u Museum website or consider seeing it in person. It is an amazing experience!
Congratulations PAHA! Best Wishes!
My husband retires in 2-1/2 years. We recently reside in CA but plan to move home after he retires. How would we go on seeing if we qualify, is there a application we can fill out? If so where can we get one. I’ll leave my email so u can contact me. We are both from the pueblo of Acoma.
Hi, Cathy – Closer to the beginning of construction for the project, the Pueblo of Acoma Housing Authority (PAHA) will open its waitlist for families to apply for the project. At that time, you will need to contact PAHA in order to receive an application packet from them along with instructions for completing the required paperwork.
PAHA will announce the opening of the waitlist through its typical means of notification (newspaper, flyers, social media, etc.). It is our recommendation you contact them directly at 505-552-7528 or visit them in person at their office located at 6-A Sunrise Road to obtain more details.
Hello!! So how do you go about applying for the housing? Very interested, please inbox me some information. Thank you!!
Hi, Larron – Closer to the beginning of construction for the project, the Pueblo of Acoma Housing Authority (PAHA) will open its waitlist for families to apply for the project. At that time, you will need to contact PAHA in order to receive an application packet from them along with instructions for completing the required paperwork.
PAHA will announce the opening of the waitlist through its typical means of notification (newspaper, flyers, social media, etc.). It is our recommendation you contact them directly at 505-552-7528 or visit them in person at their office located at 6-A Sunrise Road to obtain more details.
What’s the plan for people who aren’t low income but want to stay in Acoma?
Hi, Samuel – If you would like to learn about what housing options are available for Pueblo of Acoma families, we suggest getting in touch with the Pueblo of Acoma Housing Authority: http://puebloofacoma.org/Housing_Authority.aspx. They will be able to help answer questions about income guidelines.
Are you able to provide additional information, such as floor plans, amenities, etc?
Orlando:
Thank you for taking the time to read about PAHA’s project. The project is 30 units – 16 two bedroom/two bath units (1,114sf each) and 14 three bedroom/two bath units (1561sf each). Unit amenities include convenient parking in front of units, washer/dryer hookups, ample storage areas and energy efficient construction. Accessible units are available. There is also a community center (1657sf), playground, recreation area, walking path and basketball court. We’ve updated our project page to include floor plan layouts (see the photos at the bottom of the page – https://travois.com/developments/paha-lihtc-homes-1/ ).
If you would like more information on the project design or if you have ideas for a project of your own send me an email at ashley@travois.com or give us a call at 816-994-8970.
Additional articles regarding PAHA’s development:
https://travois.com/paha-planning-closing/
https://travois.com/celebrating-achievements-paha-lihtc-homes-1-ribbon-cutting/