$6M building transformation adds affordable housing in Elizabeth
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Easter's Home will occupy the building next to Caldwell Presbyterian Church in Elizabeth. Photo: Ashley Mahoney/Axios
A $6.03 million undertaking will transform Caldwell Presbyterian Church's former education building into 21 affordable studio apartments in Elizabeth.
Why it matters: Charlotte continues to grapple with affordable housing. Twenty-one units won't solve the city's problems, but it is an example of what can be done to address it, according to Caldwell Presbyterian's Rev. John Cleghorn.
State of play: Easter's Home, as the apartments are known, is expected to open this summer. The project is a collaboration between the church and Roof Above, a local nonprofit that will oversee day-to-day operations.
- They've collaborated with DreamKey Partners to create Caldwell Housing Inc., which will operate as Easter's Home, Cleghorn says.
How it works: Easter's Home will serve 21 individuals making 30%-50% of the area median income (AMI). Residents will sign a lease and pay roughly 30% of their adjusted monthly income, with the rest of their rent paid for through federal housing assistance.
- Each apartment is 400 square feet and includes a bathroom and kitchen, including appliances. Furniture will also be provided. There will be a shared laundry unit.
- Residents will be connected with a Roof Above case manager and offered additional services to help them get on their feet. Involvement with the church will not be required for residents, but they are more than welcome there, says Cleghorn.
- The building will be staffed by Roof Above 24/7.
Driving the news: Easter's Home is currently collecting supplies for welcome kits for residents through June 1. You can donate everything from paper towels to toothpaste.
- It costs roughly $700 to furnish a single unit with household supplies, Caldwell Housing board member and former Wells Fargo executive Elli Dai tells Axios Charlotte.
- "We really want our residents to step in and just immediately know that they are home," Dai said.
- This is a tangible way for Charlotteans to help address housing insecurity in their community, according to Dai. There will also be future ways for Charlotteans to volunteer.
Between the lines: Easter's Home is at 1615 E. Fifth St. near the CityLYNX Gold Line Streetcar and Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center, which provides residents with access to medical services and free transportation, Dai says.
- It's also next to Independence Park, which connects to Little Sugar Creek Greenway, giving residents access to nearby amenities.
By the numbers: Here's a breakdown of project funding:
- Caldwell Presbyterian Church provided: $800,000
- Myers Park United Methodist Church grant: $1 million
- North Carolina Housing Finance Agency: $600,000
- Merancas Foundation grant: $500,000
- City of Charlotte Housing Trust Fund grant: $630,000
- American Rescue Plan Act Grant through Mecklenburg County: $2.5 million
Zoom in: Easter's Home, which also has Biblical connotations, pays homage to a woman named Easter who was enslaved on the Caldwell family's plantation in northern Mecklenburg County.
- The Caldwell family donated a significant amount of money to what was then John Knox Presbyterian Church in the 1920s. The church was renamed Caldwell Memorial Presbyterian.
- "Easter's Home is meant to bring visibility to her life and others enslaved by the Caldwells and to symbolize God's Easter promise of grace, renewal, resurrection and reconciliation in Christ Jesus," according to the Easter's Home website.
