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Fort Henry Redevelopment Responds to Neighborhood Needs

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AHC Inc. has started the process of redeveloping Fort Henry Gardens, an aging garden-style apartment community with 82 two- and three-bedroom apartments in Arlington, VA. The current Fort Henry Gardens was built in the 1960s and is in need of an update. 

The proposed plan includes 26 three-bedroom apartments and 149 two-bedroom units for families and 120 one-bedroom apartments and 5 studios to serve individuals and couples. Altogether, the new Fort Henry Gardens could add an additional 200 new affordable apartments in response to the pressing need for more affordable living options in the County.

“We’re excited about redeveloping Fort Henry Gardens because it’s an aging property and this is an opportunity to provide new, energy efficient homes to hardworking families and individuals who need affordable, quality places to live in Arlington,” said Walter D. Webdale, AHC President and CEO.  “The redevelopment is also giving us the opportunity to provide homes to a wider variety of individuals, including more one bedroom apartments for seniors, which the community mentioned as a real need.”

After input from the community, AHC has added a number of features designed to benefit to neighborhood and our residents. Some of the ways AHC responded to community requests include:

  • Designating the proposed 48-unit building on Lincoln St. to be a senior building after we learned from community members of this need and long-time desire.
  • Almost doubling the size of our on-site community center in response to the need expressed from our AHC Green Valley residents. We currently have a robust Resident Services program at Fort Henry in a fairly small community center. The new space will give our students more room for indoor learning activities and also provide an opportunity to explore additional ways to build community.
  • Committing a healthy portion of our site to outdoor gathering and recreational uses in response to this request from the Civic Association.
  • Designing for solar panels in response to the County’s desire for renewable energy.

Other project highlights include:

  • Improved accessibility – apartments will be fully accessible with elevators, ADA bathrooms, and designed to meet universal design standards.
  • New fitness center.
  • Two playgrounds
  • Energy efficient appliances.

Another goal for the property is to create an inviting mix of outdoor spaces that will encourage a cohesive sense of community. Some areas will be small and intimate, while others will allow for larger gatherings. Additionally, there will be three areas on the site that are open lawns bordered by tall shade trees. Two will include play equipment for children of pre-school to elementary school age. These play areas are meant to complement the existing recreational field at Drew Elementary School.

AHC submitted the initial site plan application to the planning and zoning department in May 2020. In August, we received comments and made adjustments. The next step is the Site Plan Review Process, which we anticipate will last through this Fall. The County Board could provide zoning approval by January 2021. If all goes forward, we could begin construction in Spring 2022. Full occupancy could occur in Spring 2024.

We will continue to meet with the Green Valley Civic Association and other neighbors throughout the process. Our last meeting with our residents was virtual, unfortunately, but we offered two sessions – one in English and one in Spanish. We also provided Amharic translation for anyone who requested it.

 

Affordable Housing Redevelopment Wins $2M in Competitive Tax Credits and $8M in AHIF Loan Funds from Arlington County

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Located on the eastern end of Columbia Pike, Arlington View Terrace is a garden-apartment style community with seven two- and three-story red brick buildings. AHC is working on a redevelopment that will demolish the largest building on the site, which includes 30 apartments, and replace it with a new EarthCraft Certified Gold structure with 77 apartments.

The $38 million project continues to move forward.  In June, Arlington View Terrace East won an allocation of $2.03 million in competitive tax credits from Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA), which will generate $19 million in tax credit equity. The Arlington County Board allocated $8.23 million in funding to help redevelop AHC Inc.’s Arlington View Terrace apartment community at 1420 South Rolfe Street. The allocation includes a $7.25 million loan from the County’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF) and $984,000 of Transit Oriented Affordable Housing (TOAH) grant funds.

Once completed, the expanded apartment community will provide affordable homes to 124 individuals and families earning between 30% and 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), which ranges from $36,400 to $72,780 for a family of four, for 75 years.

“The Arlington View Terrace redevelopment enables AHC to add much-needed affordable living opportunities in a rapidly gentrifying area along Columbia Pike, said AHC President and CEO Walter D. Webdale. “The new building will also help diversify housing options with 15 new three-bedroom apartments, eight fully accessible units and 10% of the new apartments designated for households earning no more than 30% AMI,” said AHC President and CEO Walter D. Webdale.

AHC is also exploring solar panels and a possible partnership with Connect Arlington to provide free Wi-Fi for residents at the site.

“As Arlington faces an ongoing challenge to provide adequate affordable housing, the Arlington View Terrace project is an innovative approach to not only preserving affordability, but also addressing environmental and equity issues,” said Arlington Board Chair Libby Garvey.  

AHC Inc., a nonprofit developer based in Arlington, VA, builds and preserves affordable and mixed-income housing in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC. Since 1975, AHC has developed more than 7,500 apartments in the mid-Atlantic region, including nearly 4,000 in Arlington. AHC’s Resident Services program reaches 3,000 children, teens, adults and seniors each year through onsite education and social service programs and activities.

 

2019 – A Year of Building Homes and Community

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2019 has been a busy year as AHC continues our mission of developing affordable homes and helping communities thrive. This year, AHC Inc. was recognized as one of the top 50 affordable housing developers in the country by Affordable Housing Finance magazine. As we approach our 45th anniversary, AHC provides more than 7,500 affordable apartments at 50+ properties in Virginia, Maryland and DC.

AHC’s Resident Services programs and community partnerships also continue to grow to better meet the needs of the children, families and seniors we serve. We currently reach more than 3,000 residents each year.

AHC’s 2019 accomplishments include:

Building and Preserving Homes

  • Topped off The Apex that will welcome 256 families in Arlington in 2020.
  • Broke ground on The Spire, 113 new homes in 2021, with our partner Episcopal Church of the Resurrection in Alexandria.
  • Celebrated the renovation of two older garden-style apartment communities – Colonial Village West in Arlington and Lafayette Apartments in Fairfax.
  • Started the process to upgrade our oldest property in Baltimore, Greenspring Overlook, which provides homes for 189 families.
  • Continued to work with PN Hoffman, City Partners and Paramount on large-scale Waterfront Station in Southwest DC.
  • Partnered with Housing Authority of Baltimore City and The Michaels Organization to redevelop Poe Homes, a 1940s seven-acre project in Southwest Baltimore.
  • Expanded presence in Montgomery County with acquisition of 48-unit Brookside View. The approximately $6.1 million total development cost was financed completely with private funds.

Building Community

  • Hosted a Faith and Housing Round Table that included HUD Secretary Ben Carson, other nonprofit developers and the City of Alexandria.
  • Selected to participate in Amazon’s Employee Match Campaign, which allocates up to $5 million to 20 housing and homelessness nonprofits in DC and Seattle.
  • Created a safety initiative in Arlington’s Green Valley neighborhood, which includes community partners and volunteers living in AHC’s affordable apartment communities.
  • Returned $4.9 million to Arlington’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF). The AHIF loan fund is an invaluable tool for affordable housing development.
  • Offered our annual Women’s Empowerment Conference that inspired Baltimore residents to connect and overcome obstacles.

Housing + Education = Success

  • Initiated Career Fairs for middle and high school students with a wide range of professionals. Several students have already turned the opportunity into internships and job shadowing.
  • Celebrated 15 volunteers who have worked with our students for five years!
  • Honored three Community Builder volunteers who generously volunteered their time with AHC students and helped expand our programs’ reach.
  • Graduated 24 high school students who were all the first in their family to attend college. Together, the group earned more than $600,000 in scholarships and grants.
  • Persisted in college at above average rates. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 84% of AHC students stick with college and graduate. This compares to 56% of first-generation students and 74% of students with college-educated parents!
  • Helped stabilize 231 families through eviction prevention services.
  • Distributed 1,000 backpacks to youth living at AHC properties in Arlington.

Awards and Achievements

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Founded in 1975, AHC Inc. is a nonprofit developer of affordable housing in the mid-Atlantic region that provides quality homes and education programs for low- and moderate-income families. Based in Arlington, VA, AHC has developed more than 7,500 apartment units in 50+ properties in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC. AHC’s Resident Services program reaches 3,000 children, teens, adults and seniors each year through onsite education programs and activities.

 

 

AHC Renames Gates of Ballston Community Center to Honor the Rinkers

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(June 5, 2015 – Arlington, VA) – AHC Inc. today dedicated the Gates of Ballston Community Center to Charlie and Lora Rinker to honor their 40+ years of working tirelessly for social justice in Arlington. Thanks to their efforts, countless Arlingtonians live in affordable homes and those needing emergency shelter can find a warm bed and decent meal in a clean, safe place.

“After Charlie’s death, AHC decided to honor Charlie and Lora in a more permanent way, and we felt there was no better place to do that than here at The Gates of Ballston,” said AHC President and CEO Walter D. Webdale.  “Charlie was instrumental in saving this beautiful 17-acre property from redevelopment so that it could remain affordable to young singles, families with children, and retirees.  He devoted his life to advocating for affordable housing for low-income families and individuals. Lora, too, believed in stable and decent housing and she focused her energies on establishing and running a shelter for the homeless and providing needed services for those in greatest need.”

Charlie was committed to preserving affordable housing in Arlington and co-founded AHC Inc. (Arlington Housing Corporation) in 1975.  He later co-founded A-HOME (Affordable Homeownership for Everyone), and BRAVO (Buyers and Renters Arlington Voice) to give low-income residents more housing choices and a public voice.  Charlie was instrumental in saving The Gates of Ballston from conversion to market rate housing in 2001, making it possible for AHC Inc. to purchase the property in 2002 and preserve it as affordable housing.

Lora shared Charlie’s passion for social change.  While raising her young family, she co-directed the Center for New Creation, a peace and justice center.  She began to focus on hunger and homelessness in the 1980s, handing out food to those in need from her front porch.  In 1991 she co-founded A-SPAN (Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network) and served as its first Executive Director until 2007.  During those years, she also created Arlington’s first emergency winter shelter for the homeless.

Attendees included community activists, local leaders and members of the Rinker family who described how important social justice was to Lora and Charlie. “Both my parents were very much role models,” said Jeremy Rinker. “They exemplified the philosophy that one person could make a real difference.”

Also on hand at the ceremony were County Board members Mary Hynes, Jay Fisette, Walter Tejada and Libby Garvey, along with state Sen. Barbara Favola and former Virginia Del. Karen Darner.

Many of the same attendees had gathered at the Gates of Ballston in December when Senator Favola presented the Rinkers with Joint Resolutions from the Virginia General Assembly for their “leadership and devotion to the community.”

Photo left to right: Walter D. Webdale, Matthew Rinker, Natalie Rose, Lora Rinker, Jeremy Rinker and State Sen. Barbara Favola. 

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AHC Inc. Opens 83 New Affordable Apartments on Columbia Pike

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Dozens of supporters, community residents and local officials celebrated the grand opening of The Shell on May 14 in Arlington, VA.

AHC’s newest building provides 83 affordable new homes along Columbia Pike for individuals and families earning between 50% and 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI).

The six-story apartment building includes 5 three-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedrooms, 10 one-bedrooms and 5 efficiencies. Nine of the apartments are handicap accessible and six are part of the permanent supportive housing program of Arlington County.

The demand for affordable housing in Arlington continues to grow. Since 2000, Arlington County has lost 13,500 market affordable apartments. Reflecting the ongoing need, The Shell’s waiting list quickly grew to more than 650 individuals and families before AHC stopped accepting additional applications.

Planning for The Shell began when AHC discovered a gas station at the corner of Columbia Pike and South Greenbrier Street in Arlington was available for sale. Always on the lookout for potential building sites, AHC began exploring the idea of combining the gas station property with undeveloped land that it owned next door and adjacent to its Harvey Hall Apartments. Several years later, that idea became a reality.

Today, the building features an 800-square-foot community room, a fitness room, ample underground parking and a plant-filled central courtyard.

AHC also incorporated several green features at The Shell to reduce electricity consumption and water usage. The building has a green roof as well as Energy Star appliances, energy efficient heating and air conditioning, and WaterSense faucets, showerheads, and toilets. An on-site storm water filtration system was installed to reduce runoff and improve the quality of rain water draining into local waters such as the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay.

“AHC is committed to developing top-quality buildings that not only provide welcoming homes for working families, but also include architectural elements and energy-efficient features that improve our residents’ quality of life, enhance the community and stand the test of time,” said Walter D. Webdale, AHC President and CEO.

Located at a busy corner along Columbia Pike, the Shell also includes 6,600 square feet of retail space. The building was the first project to receive approval under Arlington’s innovative Form Based Code, which encourages a blend of housing and commercial spaces to create a lively, walkable community.

“As Columbia Pike redevelops, the County is working to ensure that the Pike continues to be a vibrant place for people at all ages, stages and incomes,” said County Board Chair Mary Hynes.  “We’re proud that, by partnering with AHC using our affordable housing loan program (AHIF), our public-private partnership at The Shell will provide affordable housing AND retail for its residents and the greater neighborhood.”

Financing for the $32 million project included loans from Arlington County’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund (AHIF), Capital One, Virginia Housing Development Authority, AHC Inc., and 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit equity from Hudson Housing Capital. Other partners include NeighborWorks America and EarthCraft Virginia.

The Shell was designed by Cunningham l Quill Architects and built by Harkins Builders Inc.

View More Grand Opening Event Photos

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Founded in 1975, AHC Inc. is a nonprofit developer of affordable housing in the mid-Atlantic region that provides quality homes and education programs for low- and moderate-income families. Based in Arlington, VA, AHC has developed more than 6,500 apartment units in 49 properties in Virginia and Maryland. AHC’s Resident Services program reaches 2,000 children, teens, adults and seniors each year through onsite education programs and activities.