TD Bank announced it is helping finance the redevelopment of a nursing home into affordable housing for seniors in the Kingsessing neighborhood of southwest Philadelphia.
Witherspoon Senior Apartments will be developed by Presby’s Inspired Life and is the latest initiative to help address the growing need for affordable senior housing in the city.
The bank has provided a $9.1 million construction loan through its Commercial Real Estate Group and purchased $12 million in federal low-income housing tax credits through its Community Capital Group.
The funds assist the developer to partially demolish the former nursing home at the complex for conversion into more than 65,000 square feet of new apartments. The remodeled two-story building will include 60 one-bedroom apartments that include six units for seniors with physical immobility, three units for seniors with sensory impairment, and 10 units for homeless seniors, including veterans.
The building will include community space for resident services and recreation as well as common spaces such as reading, computer, and game rooms. The community also will have a Health and Wellness Suite, which will provide a space for doctor's visits, a salon, a pharmacy, and a commissary to meet the various needs of senior residents.
"The development of Witherspoon Senior Apartments is a significant milestone for the southwest Philadelphia community," said Benjamin Kruger, vice president at TD Bank, in a statement. "We're proud to help with the revitalization of the building and hope that it provides a new beginning for many senior residents in Philadelphia.”
Witherspoon Senior Apartments will be available to households earning less than 60% of the area median income and will sit on an eight-acre campus that includes three other apartment buildings managed by Presby properties. The new affordable housing community is expected to be completed in fall 2018.
“At the heart of Presby’s ministry is its service to older adults of limited financial means,” said Judee M. Bavaria, Presby president and CEO. “Witherspoon Senior Apartments will fulfill a critical need for quality, affordable housing for older adults in southwest Philadelphia.”
Presby’s Inspired Life is a nonprofit, faith-based organization that provides continuing care and affordable housing for more than 3,000 seniors across more than 30 communities throughout greater Philadelphia.
