Boulder Housing Partners’ Stuart Grogan, Director of Development, is the recipient of the Mountain Plains NAHRO 2013 Outstanding Staff Person award. The award is given to a person whose dedication and accomplishments deserve statewide recognition.

Stuart was acknowledged for the tremendous role he plays as a teacher and a mentor in our industry. Stuart has been the driving force behind Colorado NAHRO’s investment in a conference track dedicated to affordable housing development. He has done the same for Housing Colorado. And, in his role as BHP’s Development Director, Stuart has coached and supported many young professionals who have all gone on to contribute to the broader world of our industry.  

He is widely considered a go-to person for development advice in Colorado, and has managed the development of more than $72 million in affordable housing in Boulder for BHP.

Congratulations Stuart. You make us proud!

A resident garden before and during last week’s snow storm…

Participants of the Youth Services Initiative (YSI) created works of art that will be on display throughout the month of May at the North Boulder Recreation Center. It is a great show; please take a moment to check it out!

BHP is excited to welcome two new staff members: Natasha Pelegrina as Assistant Property Manager and Nick Phillips as Property Manager.   


Natasha grew up in San Juan, Puerto Rico and traveled all over the country as a member of the United States Coast Guard during the last eight years.  She has now traded the beach for the beautiful mountains of Colorado.  With her recently earned MBA, she is ready to dedicate her time to improving the accessibility of housing in her new community.

Nick was born and raised in Boulder. He has lived in many other places, including San Francisco, but he returned to Boulder to be closer to his family and because he thought it would be a good place to settle and raise his kids. Nik loves to travel and has been fortunate enough to see a lot of interesting places around the globe. In his spare time he enjoys playing soccer, basketball and cycling.  

Construction progress on BHP’s newest affordable senior community

Cornell House in 2013

We’ve recently finished the renovation of Cornell House at 103 Canyon. The 3 bedroom single-family home was built in 1879 and has received Historic Landmark designation from the Boulder County Historic Landmark Board. This is a historic image of the property.

Boulder Housing Partners (BHP) is accepting applications for three affordable housing programs until 5 p.m. April 24, 2013.

Boulder Housing Partners provides assistance to nearly 2,000 households in the City of Boulder. Residents include area workers, seniors, families and people with disabilities. In-town affordable housing helps eliminate daily commutes and puts residents in touch with needed services.

Applications are being taken now for Section8 Housing Choice Vouchers, Section 8 Project Based Housing Program, and Public Housing.

Application English

Application Spanish

Did you know that access to the internet is one of the key predictors of educational attainment and future income today?

Within our BHP community, 170 children do not have internet access at home. It will become increasingly difficult to close the achievement gap if homework becomes internet-based and our children go without accessible technology. The Boulder Valley School District knows this too, and that’s why they are increasing the use of technology in the classroom and online access to homework, teachers and other resources.

To that end, we are launching a campaign to provide internet access at all of our housing sites. Please help us connect our children to educational opportunities by offering internet access in the homes of low income students and their families.

Boulder Housing Partners (BHP) and its Red Oak Park development have been named the winner of a 2012 Urban Land Institute (ULI) Global Award for Excellence in Real Estate Design and Development. BHP Executive Director Betsey Martens accepted the award October 19 at ULI’s 75th Anniversary Conference in Denver.  

November 6, 2012

Meeting at a BHP Community Center, kids prepared for Halloween by carving pumpkins after school. You would never know it, but some were carving for their first time! Thanks to Boulder County’s Youth Services Initiative (YSI) for organizing this very fun and festive event.

October 31, 2012

The Canyon Point Green Retrofit post-rehab utility consumption report found that we had on average 37% savings on all utilities (water, electricity and gas).

The Retrofit: Each unit of the 83-bedroom apartment complex was supplied with new ENERGY STAR kitchen appliances and air-conditioners, while the exterior of the building had new windows, new siding, new insulation, and solar panels installed.  Water conservation measures included faucet aerator, and low flow shower heads and toilets as well as a weather sensor the better regulates exterior irrigation water use.  

Findings are based on utility consumption from July 2011 through June 2012.  Read the full report on the Sustainability section of our website.

Boulder Housing Partners executive director Betsey Martens has been honored by the Boulder City Council for more than two decades of “consistent excellence, high performance and singular leadership.”  In a July 17th proclamation signed by Boulder Mayor Matthew Applebaum, the city council recognized Martens “for her extraordinary commitment to affordable housing and improving the lives of so many in Boulder and Boulder County.”

“This proclamation not only recognizes Betsey’s efforts, but the continuing commitment that organizations like Boulder Housing Partners and public officials have made to provide innovative and sustainable affordable housing in Boulder,” said Angela McCormick, chair of BHP Board of Commissioners. “While the need for affordable housing has only intensified in recent years, we are setting a national example in Boulder for thoughtful design and project financing.”

Among BHP’s most recent achievements is Red Oak Park, a $13 million infill development on the site of a deteriorating North Boulder trailer park. The 59 new homes were built to meet Boulder’s strict community standards for design and energy efficiency while remaining affordable to families earning up to 50% of the Area Median Income. Red Oak Park has won state and national awards this year by the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) and is a finalist for the Global Award for Excellence from the Urban Land Institute.

Martens has served as BHP’s executive director since 1999. Under her leadership, BHP is one of only 35 public housing authorities in the United States participating in the prestigious Moving to Work program. Administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Moving to Work gives public housing authorities exemptions from many existing rules and more flexibility with how they use the federal funds they receive. In return, agencies make recommendations to HUD on innovative programs that move the affordable housing industry forward.

Martens is also serving a two-year term as President of NAHRO, the nation’s premier housing and community development association.

Posted by Emily Reed, Media Project Coordinator

Founded less than a year ago, Boulder Food Rescue has saved over 90,000 pounds of food from being discarded.  The volunteer powered non-profit picks up soon-to-expire perishable items from local restaurants, grocers, and gardens and delivers them by bike to those in need.  Every week since February the organization has been delivering fresh produce and healthy snacks to the residents of several Boulder Housing Partners’ rental properties.

 I recently had the opportunity to visit during a delivery and experience the joy they bring with the food.  While awaiting the arrival of Paul, a Boulder Food Rescue volunteer, I spoke with BHP Resident Services Coordinator Sally Miller about the logistics of Boulder Food Rescue’s work and listened to a small group of residents enthusiastically share the ways they cooked last week’s asparagus. 

Sally mentioned that within the past few months Boulder Food Rescue has started delivering to a total of five BHP sites and has been extremely popular among the residents.  While I was there a resident explained to me that because she and many others live on a fixed income it is difficult to afford food by the end of the month.  Boulder Food Rescue helps to ease this stress by providing fruits, vegetables, and bread on a dependable schedule. 

After Paul rode in, everyone helped to unload the containers and fill the table tops in the apartment’s community room with packages of baby greens, hundreds of taco shells, and over forty pounds of cherries, strawberries, grapes, and other produce.  As residents chose their favorites, talked, smiled, and laughed, I realized that the weekly Boulder Food Rescue delivery brings more than nutritious food.      

To learn more about how Boulder Food Rescue works or to donate, visit their website.

By Cory Lamz at the Daily Camera

Boulder Housing Partners has received a national award and is a finalist for two more awards, including an international one, for its Red Oak Park affordable housing project.

Twenty-eight other real estate development projects are finalists for the international award, part of the 33rd annual Global Awards for Excellence by the Urban Land Institute. The winner will be decided at an annual conference in Denver in October.

“Factors considered by the Urban Land Institute jury for this award include generated revenue, quality of the design, what the project means for the community and how it could inspire the community,” said Daniel Lobo, manager of awards and publications at the Urban Land Institute. “Red Oak Park wasn’t even lumped into affordable housing per se but just housing in general.”

Red Oak Park, located in north Boulder, opened at the former site of Mobile Manor, an older mobile home park, in 2011. It is the only affordable housing project considered as a finalist for the international award, according to the Urban Land Institute website.

… Link to full article