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HDC MidAtlantic and Milagro House join forces to house women and children in former hospital
Cris Collingwood//November 10, 2021
HDC MidAtlantic and Milagro House join forces to house women and children in former hospital
Cris Collingwood//November 10, 2021
HDC MidAtlantic and Milagro House are working together to offer affordable housing for women and children in the Milagro House program in Phase Two of the Apartments at College Avenue in Lancaster.
“The redevelopment of the former UPMC/St. Joseph’s hospital site into a mixed-use, mixed-income community will fill many critical needs for affordable housing in Lancaster,” said Dana Hanchin, president and CEO of HDC. “We are excited to partner with Milagro House because we share the critical vision of helping vulnerable families stabilize as they transition away from homelessness.”
Phase Two, which will focus on the renovation of the Delp Wing of the St. Joseph’s Hospital’s main campus, is expected to include approximately 50 affordable apartments. HDC is the developer of all affordable housing components on the former UPMC/St. Joseph’s hospital site.
A portion of the housing space will be owned and managed by Milagro House for women and children it is helping. Final details of the renovation and partnership are still being defined.
“Milagro House currently has the capacity to house nine women with their children at our building on West Chestnut Street,” said Christina Duncan, executive director of Milagro House. “We are always at capacity. …This means we are able to give more women and their children a pathway out of poverty through educational attainment, a win-win for the families we serve and for the community we have been a part of for 23 years.”
The redevelopment of the former hospital site is taking place in three phases in partnership with Baltimore-based Washington Place Equities, for a total combined investment of approximately $90 million. Financing for Phase One was completed with the award of $1,25 million in Low Income Housing Tax Credits from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency in October. It will add 64 affordable apartments at 231 College Ave. Construction is expected to begin in late spring or early summer 2022.
