City and public housing leaders joined developers today (Wednesday) to break ground on the Samuel Madden Homes affordable housing apartment complex in Old Town.
The project will replace the former 66-unit public housing apartment complex with 532 new affordable homes across two phases. The first phase, costing $120 million, will redevelop the site into 207 units of affordable and mixed-income housing, with an estimated completion date of fall 2027.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins called the project a transformational opportunity for the city.
“This is more than a development project,” Gaskins said. “We are all looking forward to the day when we get to step in with our residents, with their families, and welcome them into their new homes, their new spaces of opportunity, where they get to write the next chapter of this legacy, the next chapter of the story, where they have the opportunity to reach their God-given character, potential and purpose here in the city of Alexandria.”
Samuel Madden Homes were first built in 1945 for defense workers during World War II. The development is being built in a partnership between the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority (ARHA), The Communities Group, Fairstead, Freddie Mac, Boston Financial and the city.
Displaced families have been provided temporary housing and will have the option to move back to the property once construction is finished.
Mark Jinks, the new chair of the ARHA Board of Commissioners, said the project will give residents an opportunity to live in a better place for the long-term.
“When this is completed, we look forward to seeing you all at the groundbreaking for phase two of this project at some point, hopefully not too far down the road,” Jinks said.
The architect on the project is Torti Gallas and Partners, and the interior designer is Determined by Design. The development has a green design goal, aiming for Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Home criteria and an Enterprise Green Communities certification.
The project also plans for a 500-square-foot ALIVE! community food hub, as well as 7,500 feet of open space.
“We’ll have a food pantry available for anyone who lives here,” said ALIVE! Executive Director Jenn Ayers. “We’re really glad to be a part of it.”
ARHA owns and operates more than 1,100 public housing properties in the city, and administers the Housing Choice Voucher program to more than 1,600 residents on other private properties in the city.
As of February, there were more than 8,700 people on the waitlist for public housing, and 10,600 people on the Housing Choice Voucher waitlist, according to an ARHA presentation.
During the groundbreaking, just blocks away at ARHA headquarters, more than a dozen residents protested living conditions and staff responsiveness to resident issues at ARHA properties. The housing authority is currently in the midst of a restructuring since the former CEO was fired in October for living in an ARHA property, followed by the resignation of the nine-member ARHA Board of Commissioners.
ARHA’s interim CEO Rickie Maddox said she has started a unit-by-unit inspection of ARHA properties.
“We’re taking accountability for it, and we’re doing what we have to do to make it right,” Maddox said. “As an agency, we can always do better. We’re not always going to be perfect, and we’ve implemented a lot of chances since September, since I started. I think over time you will see the changes that we implement.”
