ABOUT CELADON HOLDINGS, LLC
"Celadon" was established in 2008 as a LIHTC syndicator and affordable housing developer. The firm is headed by Scott Henry, former executive from JPMorgan’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) investment group.
Celadon Holdings, LLC brings significant affordable housing development experience as well as underwriting expertise in the areas of development risk management, market and financial analysis. Celadon is a Qualified Developer through Chicago’s NSP program and is a Pre-Qualified Developer for the Housing Authority of Cook County. The firm has completed over 1500 affordable housing redevelopments and Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units within and outside Illinois units.
The end goal for all of our properties, whether they are newly constructed or redeveloped, is to be the preferred place to live in the market during the entire investment horizon and beyond. That requires us to carefully select the best locations, provide an attractive amenity package with a quality and livable environment with excellent property management that not only helps maintain the asset but is also attentive to the needs of our resident population.
During the initial stages of the project, we complete a very detailed level of due diligence inclusive of forensic testing of existing projects to reveal as many risks and hidden conditions as possible. Once we have a clear picture of the project’s physical needs and we have formed a preliminary scope of work to address those needs, our property management and general contractor provide feedback relative to likely hard costs, adjustments to the scope to include necessary amenities to compete favorably in the market, likely staffing needs, and operating expense estimates. This information is inputted into our proformas and schedules and allows us forecast accurate yet conservative delivery dates and economic projections for the transaction.
As the final scope of work is being detailed, we are very focused on creating a quality living environment, which can be achieved by taking the time to think creatively in selecting the right color scheme or laying out a unit to take better advantage of natural light. In other words, creating a quality living environment sometimes means spending more money, but it also mean investing time into thinking about good design. To that end, the unit layouts and making them accessible while exceeding federal, state and local accessibility laws and requirements is important to meeting today’s needs, even if it requires an enhanced level of creative analysis by the architect to find solutions within challenging or obsolete existing buildings.
The meaning of the word “Celadon” in our company name is a shade of green, which symbolizes our commitment to an environmentally sensitive approach to our properties in an effort to make them more livable. And while there are grants available to pay for wind turbines, geothermal systems and fuel cells, our analysis of the science leads us to conclude that these technologies currently make little economic sense. Instead, we invest heavily on keeping our buildings well insulated, watertight, utilize low VOC paints, and install Energy Star appliances, HVAC systems, and use solar hot water systems to help keep the tenant’s energy bills to a minimum.
Because our final scope of work is well detailed, it enables the precise budgeting by our General Contractor’s subcontractors who were also selected to meet or exceed HUD & CHA’s Section 3 Policy and CHA’s MBE/WBE/DBE policy. The General Contractor’s budget includes material unit quantities, unit costs, man hours by trade to install each component and corresponding wage rate based on the most current Davis Bacon or Prevailing Wage rate at the time. The end result is a very detailed cost estimate that can be directly verified by a thorough set of Plans and Specifications.
Construction and Quality Control is monitored and managed by the Architect of Record as well as 3rd party experts that complete select testing of critical components (water testing windows and other penetrations, thermoscaning walls to ensure adequate insulating values, etc.). We utilize the Multivista to provide a monthly on-line photographic record of the project with image references keyed to the floor plans to allow for all project stakeholders to monitor the progress of the project from their computers.