Chenowith Loop Project Anchors 200-Unit Affordable Housing Surge in Gorge
The front of the building will face Chenowith Loop Road with a main entrance and two secondary entrances for offices and a community meeting room for educational purposes. Click to enlarge image.
By Tom Peterson
The Dalles, Ore., Nov. 17, 2025 — Columbia Cascade Housing Corporation is preparing for one of the largest affordable-housing expansions in its 35-year history, with more than 200 new apartments expected to come online in the next few years — a 48 percent increase in its regional portfolio.
It’s a scale of growth that could significantly ease pressure on families barely making ends meet as inflation continues to erode budgets across the Mid-Columbia. For example, a cursory look at rent for a 2-bedroom apartment in The Dalles shows a range between $1,375 and $1,800 per month.
Columbia Cascade Housing Corporation Executive Director Karen Long
So it’s no surprise, a major piece of that affordable housing expansion is the proposed 76-unit development on Chenowith Loop Road, where construction is expected to begin in late summer or early fall of 2026. CCHC Executive Director Karen Long said she is “excited” about the project and noted that the organization is currently choosing a name. The development is being built jointly with Northwest Housing Alternatives and includes a mix of family units, veteran-dedicated apartments, and on-site offices for resident-service programs and partner agencies.
City planning staff approved the site plan with conditions on Sept. 22.
The 60 percent Area Median Income, or AMI, requirement ties rental eligibility to federally established income limits that adjust each year based on household size. Currently in Wasco County, the median income for a four-person at 60 percent of AMI, is a household income of about $62,000 per year.
The Chenowith proposal includes 19 one-bedroom, 36 two-bedroom, and 21 three-bedroom units built around a west-facing courtyard with play areas for different age groups, garden beds, walking paths through the trees, and landscaped gathering space designed to support families.
Here is the main floor of the building which takes up 19,614 square feet or about a quarter of the site’s 1.76 acres, according to Wasco County property maps. Click to enlarge image.
Of the 76 apartments, 20 are reserved for veterans, and 56 are family units, mainly two- and three-bedrooms. Long said 40 units will have project-based rental assistance, meaning rent adjusts to each household’s income. The remaining units will be priced below market at income-restricted rates.
The project comes on the heels of the even larger Mariposa Village project currently under construction in Hood River.
A view of the Mariposa Village construction site on Rand Road in Hood River about two weeks ago. Photo courtesy Walsh Construction.
It will bring 130 new apartments to a seven-acre site at 780 Rand Road which is being developed by Community Development Partners and Columbia Cascade Housing Corporation.
It is the largest addition of affordable rental housing to the city since 2011. Built on land donated by the City of Hood River, Mariposa Village will serve local workers, families, and seniors who have been priced out of the market amid low vacancy rates and some of the highest rental pressures in the region.
The development will open in two phases beginning in summer 2026 and will also serve households earning up to 60 percent of the Area Median Income.
Mariposa Village is backed by a complex financing package reflecting its size and regional impact, including $37 million in private activity bonds, federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, a $16 million LIFT award, a $3 million HUD Community Project Funding grant, a $2.4 million state infrastructure grant, and additional support from the Energy Trust of Oregon and the Oregon Multifamily Energy Program.
Walsh Construction is the general contractor, Holst Architecture designed the project, and PLACE is the landscape architect. Columbia Cascade Housing Corporation or CCHP will provide on-site resident services such as Homebuying 101 classes, financial education, cooking and fitness programs, and partnerships with The Next Door Inc., Nch’i Wana Housing, and the Oregon Human Development Corporation to ensure access for Tribal members, agricultural workers, and other income-eligible households.
Long emphasized the depth of unmet housing need in the region.
“There is a huge need,” she said. Many service-sector workers, caregivers, and even full-time employees cannot afford local rents, she noted. Housing Choice Voucher applicants may wait 18 months to two years for openings through the Mid-Columbia Housing Authority.
“It’s a national problem. There simply isn’t enough funding for the number of people who need units.”
More Detail on Chenowith Loop Project in TD
The four-story building in The Dalles will include a community room, laundry areas, and a dedicated wing for social-service partners. Mid-Columbia Community Action Council will co-locate onsite to provide veteran-family case management and housing-stability services. Mid-Columbia Center for Living will offer behavioral-health support, and The Next Door Inc. will provide family and youth programming. CCHC’s resident-services coordinator will offer on-site classes such as financial literacy workshops and cooking demonstrations.
Access Architecture’s design incorporates bronze-toned cladding, deep vertical notches, and extruded framing meant to echo the basalt formations of the Gorge. The building is oriented toward Chenowith Loop Road, with most apartments shielded by the courtyard.
Parking will wrap around the structure with 76 resident spaces plus dedicated parking for partner-agency staff. The site sits next to the The Dalles Transit Center, beside Chenowith Elementary School, and within reach of grocery shopping.
“It’s a great location,” Long said.
Rendering of the landscaping, courtyard and parking that will surround the Chenowith Loop Project.
Columbia Cascade Housing Corporation
CCHC has been developing affordable housing for 35 years and currently owns 24 properties totaling 435 units across Sherman, Klickitat, Wasco, Hood River and Skamania counties. Its 25th project, Mariposa, a 135-unit development on Rand Road in Hood River, is currently under construction. The Chenowith Loop project will be CCHC’s 26th development.
Long said CCHC recently hired a director of real estate development to manage its growing pipeline, which includes roughly ten projects spanning new construction and preservation of existing affordable units. She said the Chenowith Loop project is “fully funded” and moving forward.
“For us, this is our work,” she said. “Affordable housing is expensive for a lot of reasons, but it’s a huge investment in the community — and it’s absolutely worth it.”
