Inter-Faith Council for Social Service

IFC Wins 2016 Housing North Carolina Award

NCHFA photo

Housing Developments, Municipalities Honored with 2016 Housing North Carolina Awards

RALEIGH — Housing developments in Pittsboro, Charlotte and Chapel Hill received Housing North Carolina Awards on Oct. 12 for excellence in affordable housing. Sponsored by the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, the 27-year-old statewide awards recognize outstanding home ownership, rental and supportive housing developments that can serve as models for other communities. Winners were honored at a special Oct. 12 luncheon during the N.C. Affordable Housing Conference at the Raleigh Convention Center, which hosted approximately 1,000 housing industry professionals.

Winning developments were selected for affordability, design, sustainability, community contribution, resident services and creative partnerships. They are:

  • Bellemont Pointe, Pittsboro, a rental development offering 76 apartments for working families. Developed by Solstice Partners, these garden apartment homes are located close to shopping and employment opportunities.
  • Renaissance, Charlotte, a rental housing development for both mixed-income and multi-generational families that helped revitalize a former public housing site. The apartments were developed by Laurel Street Residential with support from the City of Charlotte and the Charlotte Housing Authority.
  • SECU Community House, Chapel Hill, an energy-efficient transitional housing facility for 52 homeless men as well as an emergency shelter for 17 more. Services include substance abuse education and counseling, job coaching, and counseling. The SECU Community House was developed by the Inter-Faith Council for Social Service with support from the SECU Foundation, the Town of Chapel Hill, and Orange County..
  • Elizabeth Heights, Charlotte, a neighborhood revitalization project that has restored Greir Heights to a flourishing community. This mixed-income community was created by CrossRoads Corporation for Affordable Housing & Community Development and the Self-Help CDC with support from the City of Charlotte.
  • Phoenix Place, Chapel Hill, 50 affordable homes for working families developed by Habitat for Humanity of Orange County. This neighborhood was developed with support from the county and the Town of Chapel Hill to revitalize the Rogers Road neighborhood.

The N.C. Housing Finance Agency is a self-supporting public agency that has financed more than 242,000 affordable homes and apartments. The Agency hosts the N.C. Affordable Housing Conference, Oct. 12-13, in partnership with the Community Investment Corporation of the Carolinas and the N.C. Housing Coalition.

SECU Community House, Chapel Hill

For nearly 30 years, a shelter for homeless men in Chapel Hill was provided by the worn-out, 77-year-old town hall building that had a jail in its basement. Today, the new SECU Community House offers both a home and a welcome haven for these men to rebuild their lives and rejoin their community. 

                Developed by the Inter-Faith Council for Social Service with support from the SECU Foundation, the Town of Chapel Hill, and Orange County, the SECU Community House provides transitional housing for 52 homeless men as well as emergency shelter for 17 more. Residents have access to substance abuse education and counseling, job coaches, psychiatrists and counselors. Piedmont Health Services operates an onsite medical and dental clinic at no charge to residents, and SECU Community House’s energy-efficient design includes amenities like a kitchen, dining room and library as well as bedrooms that accommodate residents at every stage of their journey to independence.

                In addition to local, state and federal funding, the shelter was funded by a $1 million grant from the SECU Foundation and a capital campaign that raised an additional $1.2 million. The site is on land leased to the Town of Chapel Hill from the University of North Carolina for $1 per year for the next 50 years.