In The News

Millions of low-cost homes are deteriorating, making the U.S. housing shortage worse.

Older homes are the only ones many Americans can afford, but they are costly to fix and maintain, especially for seniors. A patchwork of programs to help are underfunded and have years-long waitlists.
NPR: https://apple.news/Ap_O3rR-bRta8MFlg2y0FHg

Press Release on Reginald Watson’s Appointment to DC Commission on Aging

Wednesday, June 26, 2024, Reginald Watson was sworn in at the Department of Aging and Community Living (DACL) as a member on the Mayor’s Commission on Aging. The Commission on Aging was established to advise the Mayor, the Director of DACL, the Council of the District of Columbia, and the public at-large concerning the views and needs of the aged in the District of Columbia. As a Commissioner, his primary duty will be to advocate for DC seniors. Read More

Kenilworth Residences celebrated as newly constructed senior affordable housing located in Ward Seven

Church Pews Are Sitting Empty. Can They Become Affordable Housing?

Northwood Presbyterian Church is, in a sense, a kind of home. People have gotten married in the cinder block building. They’ve sat with their kids in the pews and watched the Rev. Chris Deacon deliver sermons beneath the stained-glass cross for years. Read More

The hottest trend in U.S. cities? Changing zoning rules to allow more housing

As Americans struggle to find affordable housing, cities are realizing their own rules have made it too hard and expensive to build the homes they need. Now, some cities are trying to change that. Read in NPR: https://apple.news/A2d1VNxzzTA6GGp5ItCAmDg

Mayor Bowser Breaks Ground on 93 Units of Affordable Senior Housing in Ward 3

First Project West of Rock Creek Park to Receive Financing from the District’s Housing Production Trust Fund. Read More

First American city to tame inflation owes its success to affordable housing

The Minneapolis area has seen an increase in rental units, thanks to a regional effort that included new zoning rules. Read in Bloomberg: Read More

Could this unconventional plan lower skyrocketing home prices?

Imagine a bustling neighborhood with a mix of single-family homes, triplexes, apartment buildings, businesses, and public amenities. Rent growth is slow, home prices are reasonable, and there are plenty of affordable-housing options. Families, young people, retired folks, and businesses are all able to coexist, making the area diverse and vibrant. Unfortunately, most American neighborhoods don’t look like this. Instead, huge parts of the country have zoning laws that make it illegal to build Read in Business Insider: Read More

Zion Baptist Church Humanitarian Spirit Award for Volunteerism

The Board of Trustees of The National Center for Children and Families (NCCF) recognizes Zion Baptist Church with its Humanitarian Spirit Award for Volunteerism for its critical role as a pillar of volunteerism, community education, and outreach in Washington, DC. This award will be presented in-person at NCCF’s upcoming community gala, CONNECTED! The HeART of Community on Saturday, October 14, 2023, from 6:00-10:00 PM at Bethesda Blues & Jazz. Please refer to the attached document for additional information. Read More

Baby Boomers Want to Age in Place. U.S. Houses Aren’t Designed for Them to Do That

The aging Baby Boomer generation desires to stay in their homes as they age, but the majority of houses in the U.S. are not suitable for their needs. This presents a challenge as they prefer not to relocate to senior care facilities. Read More

D.C. Churches Challenged But Not Giving Up, Working for Affordable Housing

January 25, 2023

Having long been lauded as a spiritual hub for the Black community, Washington, D.C., has boasted congregations filled with African American members who intentionally come to the nation’s capital to worship every Sunday. Today many of the larger churches are still open, however, a growing number of smaller churches have sold their property, moved to Maryland or have simply remained closed more than two years after the pandemic. “This is a period where the African American churches are under great challenge,” said Terry Lynch, executive director of the Downtown Cluster of Congregations. “Congregations are aging, facing physical and … Read More

Heroes in our Midst: Making Luxury Housing Affordable in D.C.

How community developer Buwa Binitie is fighting the housing crunch and strengthening D.C.’s communities. When Buwa Binitie moved to Washington, D.C., he couldn’t find an apartment. “Initially, it was hard for me, even with a good income, to find an affordable place to live,” he said. That was 16 years ago. Since then, the cost of housing in Washington has almost doubled, far outpacing the growth of household income. As the cost of housing spiked during the pandemic, affordable housing has become scarcer — and the housing crunch isn’t going away any time soon. Read More

DC Office of Planning

August 2022

As summer comes to a close, we’re gearing up for a busy fall at the DC Office of Planning (OP). We will continue to advance our priorities around community planning, housing, and economic recovery. We’re also excited about upcoming Streets for People events. See the article below for more information. Sincerely, Anita Cozart Interim Director, DC Office of Planning Read More

U.S. Treasury Funding Gives Industrial Bank Boosts in Helping Minorities and Lower-Income Communities

July 11, 2022

2022 is proving to be a big year for B. Doyle Mitchell Jr., president and CEO of Industrial Bank. Not only is he celebrating a milestone birthday, but funding from the federal government and a community partnership may help to take the district’s Black-owned bank to the next level. Last month the bank received $82 million from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Emergency Capital Investment Program. Read More

D.C. Breaks Ground On Long-Awaited Barry Farm Redevelopment

By Michael Brice-Saddler | September 26, 2022 | Washington Post

Paulette Matthews, 63, watched discerningly on Monday as D.C. government officials celebrated the redevelopment of Barry Farm, the historically significant Southeast community where she lived for more than two decades before she was forced to move away. Matthews is among hundreds of Barry Farm residents who were relocated as D.C. pursued revitalizing the impoverished area. And as vice president of the Barry Farm Tenants and Allies Association, she has fought to preserve Barry Farm’s integrity and to ensure the residents who left would be able to return, as promised. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) and others reiterated that commitment while breaking ground on the redevelopment, conceptualized by the D.C. Housing Authority more than a decade ago as officials sought to break up concentrated poverty in areas with distressed public housing. Read More

California Churches Want to Build Affordable Housing on Their Land, So Why Is It So Hard?

Aug 18 2022

Back in 2021, Ira Hudson was looking for a new apartment in Berkeley, but couldn’t find anything she could afford. For the past nine years, she had been living in downtown Oakland. But when her building’s management changed last year, Hudson started noticing infestations of bugs in the halls and in her apartment. She started to feel unsafe around new neighbors who were loud and behaved erratically. “Before, they used to screen the people they let in, but [then] they started to let any and everybody come in here,” she said. “The place was just [falling apart] and I couldn’t stand the bugs” Read More

Recent C-PACE Closing:

The Oliver

Washington D.C.

2711-2719 Georgia Avenue NW will be home to The Oliver, a new construction mixed-use project comprised of 93 apartment units and 41,000 SF of office space that will be located on Howard University’s campus in Washington, DC. The Oliver is named after the founder of Howard University, Oliver Otis Howard. The total development costs for the project is $64.5MM, of which $12.7MM in C-PACE financing from Nuveen Green Capital will be used to fund envelope, lighting, HVAC, elevators, and water conservation measures. Read More

Washington D.C. Mayor Bowser Names Capital Impact Partners To Help Manage New Affordable Housing Preservation Fund

March 2018

A $10 million Fund will be used to leverage private and philanthropic dollars to create $40 million for investing in affordable housing across D.C.’s eight wards. WASHINGTON, DC (March 14, 2018) – Washington, D.C.’s Mayor Muriel Bowser today announced that Capital Impact Partners and Local Initiatives Support Corporation-DC (LISC), two national nonprofit Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), will manage the District’s newly created $10 million Affordable Housing Preservation Fund. Read More

D.C. announces first affordable housing project in Ward 3 backed by housing production trust

Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) announced Wednesday the creation of nearly 800 units of affordable housing as part of the District’s historic investment in the production of homes for low-income residents. The 10 projects selected by the Department of Housing and Community Development will receive more than $135 million from the Housing Production Trust Fund (HPTF) — the city’s primary tool for financing affordable housing amid a persistent and dire Districtwide shortage — along with tax breaks and the promise of vouchers to ensure some of the new affordable housing is available to the District’s poorest residents, D.C. officials said. Among the 10 projects is the first affordable housing development in Ward 3 to be backed by the HPTF. The development will add 93 units to a Friendship Heights senior living facility known as the Lisner-Louise-Dickson-Hurt Home that will accommodate District residents “at a range of income levels,” according to D.C. officials. Read More

Housing Affordability Planning Program by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and its members are committed to working to increase the amount, affordability, and accessibility of the region’s housing supply, particularly near transit. These housing targets, when taken with other shared goals on transportation, equity, and climate, are helping the region work toward creating more transit-oriented communities and address longstanding inequities. COG’s Housing Affordability Planning Program (HAPP), established in October 2021, advances this vision. What is HAPP? HAPP will award small, flexible grants of up to $75,000 to area local governments and non-profit developers… Read More

Home prices are up for black families, Is selling grandma’s house the right choice?

NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO | LAUREL WAMSLEY | DECEMBER 28, 2021 To Fred Brown, the sale of his grandmother’s house was a big mistake. That’s the home where he grew up with his grandmother, parents and four siblings in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C. His grandmother bought the house in 1960 for under $7,000. After she died, Brown says his father wanted his aunts to help pay the taxes on the house. “I guess they didn’t want to pay it, so they had a big dispute. And you know, they just wind up selling it,” he says. Read More

Racine’s office to expand affordable-housing role

Attorney general calls for zoning changes to help low-income residents The Washington Post3 Dec 2021BY MICHAEL BRICE- SADDLER michael.brice-saddler@ washpost.com D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine said the city’s dramatic growth over the past seven years has “too often . . . hurt and pushed out long-term and low-income residents.” D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine on Thursday announced his office will expand its scope to push for housing affordability, and is calling on the District’s Zoning Commission to make several changes that he says will help more low-income residents access housing… Read More

DC Faith Based Development Initiative Cohort Project Presentation Session

Tues November 23, 2021| Noon – 3:00 p.m. EDT Join us for our DC FBDI Cohort Project Presentations Working to do Ministry Beyond the Walls Started in 2006, The Enterprise Faith-Based Development Initiative engages and assists the faith community in affordable housing and community development through the provision of training, capital, and expertise, connecting them with the resources needed to realize their development goals… Read More

Untapped Potential Between Faith and Housing

By Tim Block, Sr. Program Director, Enterprise Community Partners When you think of faith-based organizations (FBOs) like churches, synagogues, or temples, you probably think of how they provide spiritual connection and a sense of community for attendees. Many also provide a variety of services such as food pantries, childcare and other community resources. Houses of faith have a role to play in the stability and prosperity of the communities they serve—and there is more we can do to maximize the benefits they bring… Read More

Historic D.C. Hotel Sold, To Be Converted Into Senior Living

Dupont Circle’s historic Fairfax at Embassy Row hotel has been sold, and the new owner plans to turn it into senior housing. Maplewood Senior Living and Omega Healthcare Investors Inc. (NYSE: OHI) have acquired the property at 2100 Massachusetts Ave. NW from New York City-based Westbrook Partners, per a release. The price reported to the D.C. Recorder of Deeds was $58.1 million, though hotel deeds often reflect lower sale prices due to the removal of some of the hotel’s intangible assets, such as customer base and reputation, for tax purposes… Read More

As More Churches Approach Fiscal ‘Breaking Point,’ Housing Projects Are Providing a Lifeline

Churches in cities around the country have faced declining memberships and revenues over the last decade, a trend that has been exacerbated by the Coronavirus pandemic. As land becomes scarce in cities that are looking to build more housing, religious institutions are increasingly partnering with developers to build on their large pieces of valuable urban property, unlocking a long-term source of income for churches that are struggling financially… Read More