The Housing Authority of Plainfield has selected WinnDevelopment, the development arm of Boston-based WinnCompanies, as its partner to renovate two of the Union County city’s affordable housing communities totaling 353 apartments under a federal program that empowers housing authorities to preserve and improve aging public housing properties.
The project will modernize Richmond Towers, a 225-unit community offering low-income housing for seniors and disabled individuals, and Joanne Hollis Gardens, a 128-unit family housing community. All residents will have the right to return to the renovated apartments and will continue to pay no more than 30% of their adjusted income toward the rent.
After renovations, residents will benefit from on-site, professional management and maintenance teams, as well as new services supported by the non-profit Connected Communities, a provider of housing-based supportive services.
Inglese Architecture & Engineering of Cedar Grove is the architect. HousingToHome of Boston will serve as the temporary relocation coordinator to support residents.
Richmond Towers, at 510 E. Front St., was built more than 50 years ago and features two 12-story towers housing 135 studio apartments and 90 one-bedroom apartments. Built in 1954 as West End Gardens, Joanne Hollis Gardens, at 507 West Third St., was rededicated in 2015 to posthumously honor Joanne Hollis, who served as a Plainfield housing commissioner and city councilwoman. The two-story, garden-style complex has 16 one-bedroom, 66 two-bedroom, 32 three-bedroom and 14 four-bedroom apartments.
“Winn Development was selected as our preferred partner based on an open, competitive request for proposals that demonstrated that they have the financial resources, public housing experience, and development expertise for this important project,” said Housing Authority of Plainfield Executive Director Randall Wood. “This transformative solution will allow the Housing Authority of Plainfield to raise the quality of its properties portfolio-wide for residents and the community for many years to come.”
The project will be carried out under the aegis of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, which allows the housing authority to leverage public and private debt and equity to reinvest in its housing stock and make it affordable to low-income households for decades to come.
WinnDevelopment has a long history of working with public housing authorities to modernize or replace obsolete apartments and strengthen housing opportunities, partnering with tenant leaders, municipal governments and HUD to transform public housing complexes in Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
