Greensboro Regency Inn housing project won't be completed until 2027 under new proposal

If approved, a long-awaited housing project at the site of the former Regency Inn in Greensboro likely won’t be completed until 2027 — years after the original target opening date. That’s according to an update presented to City Council Tuesday by nonprofit Step Up on Second, which is leading the project. 

Step Up and development partner Slate Property Group pitched expanding the project from 58 permanent supportive housing units to 201 mixed-use units earlier this month, prompting questions from Council about the timeline and budget. 

On Tuesday, Step Up leaders told Council they planned to complete construction on all units in 2027 and finance the project in part via tax credits. Councilmember Sharon Hightower was skeptical.

“I just really want to be clear on what is it gonna take to get across the finish line for this project," she said. "It's gonna take more money, because that's what I hear. Because if the tax credits don't go through, if you don't have a backup plan, then the city becomes your backup plan.”

Step Up did not make an additional funding request at the meeting. The city has so far invested $3 million in the project, which was originally expected to be completed by next year. 

The initiative became controversial after Step Up was named in a multimillion-dollar California lawsuit in January. 

City Manager Taiwo Jaiyeoba told council that more details about the project’s financing would be shared by the end of March.