With housing costs rising in cities from coast to coast, renters in Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Provo are being squeezed. For senior citizens on a fixed income, the pressure can be intense.
KUTV brought the issue into focus for viewers in a feature story this week. St. Mark’s Tower residents Joe Wick and Edna Williams appear in the feature, along with Lisa Jones.
“This could easily be a luxury apartment complex, and it’s for us, poor people,” Edna said, smiling. “It makes me feel so secure. Really, it does.”
“Our residents deserve a nice place to live,” said Lisa Jones, owner of Danville Development Corporation, which manages St. Mark’s Tower and a number of other affordable housing properties.
In this hot housing market, Lisa said she regularly receives calls from interested buyers wanting to purchase one of their affordable housing properties. “Our owners are all mission-driven. They’re in it for the residents.”
St. Mark’s Tower is owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Utah.