A private housing authority is investing $4 million to rehabilitate two distressed apartment complexes in Bastrop County, a move that could improve affordable housing conditions in two cities.

The Texas Housing Foundation, which is privately funded, plans to renovate and manage the Bastrop Oaks I and II Apartments in Bastrop and the Meadow Park Apartments in Elgin, investing about $2.6 and $1.6 million, respectively, into the two properties, founder Mark Mayfield said.

The overhaul includes new lighting, cabinets, flooring, paint and appliances for 62 units on Wilson Street in Bastrop and 41 units on Texas 95 in Elgin. The parking lots and grounds will also be upgraded, Mayfield said, and workers will install new heating, insulation and air conditioning systems, as well as energy-efficient windows.

"It’s a pretty substantial investment," Mayfield said. "We are confident that we will be able to change the complexes and make them a benefit to the communities and not a detriment to them."

The foundation plans to apply for private activity bonds from the Texas Department of Community Affairs and Housing to pay for the projects. Bastrop and Elgin will not be contributing any money to the renovations.

Before it could apply for funding, the organization was required to obtain approval from the local governments.

The Bastrop City Council last week approved a resolution in support of the project.

"It’s a huge improvement and a huge investment," City Manager Lynda Humble said at the July 25 meeting. "We certainly appreciate their willingness to invest in the community."

Mayfield had planned to approach the Elgin City Council on Monday for its blessing.

Formed in 1995, the Texas Public Housing Foundation was the brainchild of Mayfield, who had worked many years for the government housing authority in Marble Falls. During his time in the industry, he noticed several flaws with government housing programs, which he said often catered to less responsible parties and ended up perpetuating its own problems.

He wanted to come up with a new model and had the idea for the foundation, which focuses primarily on construction projects that bring workforce and affordable housing to cities across Texas.

Through its own internal funding sources, it has built and manages 1400 apartment units statewide.

"It’s kind of surprising that it’s grown like it has," Mayfield said. "But the need for this type of housing is just tremendous."

The projects in Bastrop and Elgin, as well as for 15 other properties in Texas, will be the first acquisition for the housing authority, which had previously only been involved in new construction.

"We are kind of scared of it a little bit — but then again, I am always up for a good challenge," Mayfield said.

The complexes had been owned by a private company in Illinois but financed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Mayfield said. He called them "severely distressed" and in dire need of improvement.

"They’ve been lived in — and they’ve been lived in hard," he said. "They need some work, but frankly the federal government is not in a place where they are going to fund the capital improvements that need to go on with that. They are looking to other organizations that would go out and do that, and we have been asked to be that organization."

Tenants will still get assistance from the federal government if they are enrolled in the programs, Mayfield said. However, under the new management, residents will be required to undergo background checks and adhere to lease requirements. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will set rents based on income, reserving the units for families that typically earn between $19,500 to $32,000 a year.

Renovation of the Bastrop and Elgin complexes is expected to break ground in 2018, Mayfield said. Residents at Bastrop Oaks and Meadow Park will be moved to local hotels and receive a $50 daily stipend for up to a week while their residences are overhauled, he said.

Both complexes will be taken off the cities’ tax rolls after the renovation, since the foundation is a tax-exempt organization.