Veterans who had struggled with chronic homelessness have come home.
They have a found a place of their own at HELP Perry Point Veterans Village, a 75-unit development built on the campus of the Perry Point VA Medical Center in Maryland. The location puts the men and women just steps away from medical care and other important services.
“This is 100% supportive housing for 75 homeless veterans and their families in an ideal location,” says David Cleghorn, chief housing officer at HELP USA. “It’s a tremendous place for these folks to live and get back on their feet. There’s no way it could be replicated elsewhere. We built a neighborhood.”
The nonprofit organization demolished severely dilapidated homes on the campus to make way for 33 new duplex buildings. It also completed substantial renovations to nine single-family homes and built a large management and community building. The net zero-energy development includes a 4-acre, 420-kW solar-array field that feeds back into power grid.
Eight units are set aside for residents earning no more than 30% of the area median income (AMI), with the rest at 50% of the AMI. All the units are supported by Department of Housing and Urban Development-VA Supportive Housing vouchers.
Built by Harkins Builders, Veterans Village was a 10-year effort that overcame a NIMBY battle with local officials, turmoil in the financial markets, and the need to remediate a contaminated site.
The $23.3 million development was financed largely with 4% low-income housing tax credit equity from National Equity Fund.
