The Board of Estimates discussed several plans to provide low income housing in a meeting Monday, including a proposed development on the site of an abandoned dairy plant on East Washington Avenue.

The development would provide 55 housing units to veterans and families at risk of homelessness. The affordable housing would be interspersed with market-rate housing and would be located across the street from a new parking garage, Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said.

January is a popular time for housing proposals for tax-related reasons, Verveer said.

“We’ve been fortunate to see several affordable housing development projects come before City Council because the main funding mechanism is federal tax credits, and the application deadline for those is the end of January,” he said.

Verveer said these tax credits from the federal government are often what make affordable housing projects feasible. Projects awarded tax credits are more attractive to investors, as the credits are quite scarce, Verveer said. The Board of Estimates’ approval will make the project on East Washington Avenue a much stronger candidate for these scarce federal tax credits, he said.

Last week, City Council endorsed two other affordable housing projects — one on West Mifflin Street and another on South Park Street.

Verveer said this is a positive development, as a shortage of affordable housing currently exists in Madison.

“It is acknowledged by everybody in city hall and the larger community that there is a severe shortage of affordable housing in Madison,” Verveer said.