A 100-year-old rooming house in Alexandria’s Parker-Gray neighborhood is getting a significant facelift to keep providing affordable housing.
The Pendleton Rooming House (1022 Pendleton St.) is starting a big renovation project, according to the City of Alexandria’s Office of Housing. They’re upgrading the building’s central systems to make it safer and more accessible while preserving its historic charm.
Extensive exterior and interior modifications, will include upgrades to major building systems, including plumbing and electrical systems, the installation of insulation, geothermal, and safety and accessibility improvements, and the restoration of the former commercial space facing Henry Street.
This property has been in the same family for over a century, boasting a fascinating history.
The interdepartmental City team working on this project appreciates the collaboration with the property’s operator, Ms. Janice Howard, whose family has owned this mixed-use building for more than 100 years. While serving as the family’s home initially, the property also housed a blacksmith shop and the Alexandria Home Bakery operated by Ms. Howard’s grandfather. During segregation, the residential portion of the building was a green-book style sanctuary for African American travelers in need of accommodations in the City. The list of luminaries who were guests included Elijah Muhammed, the founder of the Nation of Islam, and musician, Cab Calloway. It also served as a meeting place for local African American organizations and later became a community social hub when it functioned as a beauty salon and barber shop.
Since the early 1970’s the property has operated as a rooming housing for Alexandria’s working poor. The Pendleton Street Rooming House Rehabilitation Project will ensure that the building continues to enhance housing affordability in the community as well as stand as a culturally and architecturally significant landmark within the historic Parker-Gray neighborhood.
The renovation includes updating the plumbing and electrical systems, adding insulation and geothermal energy, and renovating the old commercial space facing Henry Street.
Existing residents of the rooming house were relocated within the city before the start of construction and will have the opportunity to return upon completion. According to the Office of Housing, rents will be restricted upon project completion to help ensure residents at risk of homelessness remain stably housed.
Funding for the project includes federal grant funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, with the support of U.S. Representatives Don Beyer and Mark R. Warner, and U.S. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark R. Warner.
According to the project’s webpage, construction was scheduled to begin in April 2025 and wrap up by February 2026.
