MEND and Conifer Realty, LLC Receive 2014 Award from Supportive Housing Association of NJ for Springside School Apartments in Burlington Township

Moorestown Ecumenical Neighborhood Development (MEND) and its joint venture development partner Conifer Realty, LLC have received the Supportive Housing Association of New Jersey’s (SHA) “Supportive Housing Project Award – Large Scale Developments” for their development of the Springside School Apartments in Burlington Township. The 75-unit low- and moderate-income apartment community opened earlier this year and now provides residences and services for both senior citizens and those requiring supportive services for independent living.
The annual SHA Awards recognize successful initiatives and honor the leadership and dedication of outstanding individuals and organizations that increase permanent supportive housing opportunities for special needs populations in New Jersey. The award was presented to MEND and Conifer on December 5th at the Renaissance Woodbridge Hotel in Iselin, where more than 400 attendees gathered for SHA’s annual Supportive Housing Conference. Kiki Jamieson, President of The Fund for New Jersey, was on-hand to announce the award for MEND.
Springside features 32 apartments located in the former Springside Elementary School – initially built in 1871 as a one-room schoolhouse known as the Mitchell School at Springside. The remaining 43 apartments are located in a new, two-story addition attached to the rear of the former school. The apartments have been 100 percent occupied since April of this year. Sixteen of the apartments are occupied by individuals who require supportive services that are provided by Legacy Treatment Services (formerly the Lester A. Drenk Behavioral Health Center) of Hainesport, NJ.

According to Matthew Reilly, President and CEO of MEND, “We’re honored to receive a SHA Award for Springside School Apartments. Since our inception 45 years ago, affordable rental housing production has been and will always be our primary focus. And now we are also helping to blaze new trails in NJ by incorporating supportive services units into our new housing developments. This development is also a role model and template for how the nonprofit and forprofit sectors – MEND and Drenk/Legacy and Conifer Realty – can work together with local, county and state government to accomplish important public objectives.”

“We’re pleased to receive this award and are especially proud that Springside is providing affordable permanent residences to Burlington Township seniors,” says Charles M. Lewis, Senior Vice President, Conifer Realty, LLC. “This new housing, as well as similar projects that Conifer and MEND are working on, puts us on the cutting edge of a nation-wide effort to house special needs populations in community settings where shelter and services go hand-in-hand.”

In recognition of this SHA award, the NJ Senate and General Assembly, led by Senate President Stephen Sweeney, adopted a Joint Legislative Resolution, noting that “Springside School Apartments has established a model to emulate and set a standard of excellence toward which other supportive housing projects might strive.”

Photo Caption
Sam Leone, Vice President of Conifer Realty; Matt Reilly, President and CEO of Moorestown Ecumenical Neighborhood Development (MEND), Inc.; Kiki Jamieson, President of The Fund for New Jersey.

About MEND
Celebrating its 45th anniversary, Moorestown Ecumenical Neighborhood Development, Inc. (MEND) is a private, nonprofit, housing development organization founded by several Moorestown churches in 1969. MEND is a national and state award-winning developer dedicated to providing safe and affordable rental housing to senior citizens, disabled persons, and families of low and moderate income. MEND has developed 718 residential units at 29 locations in the Burlington County region. Over the last four decades, MEND’s affordable housing production efforts have represented a $150 million real estate investment in the region. Please visit www.mendinc.org for more information.

About Conifer Realty, LLC
Conifer Realty, LLC is a full-service real estate company specializing in the development and management of high-quality, affordable housing communities. Since its inception, the company has developed and/or acquired over 230 properties and over 17,300 apartment units. Conifer concentrates its business in New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The company currently owns and manages over 13,000 apartment units throughout these regions. Please visit www.coniferllc.com
for more information.