New Affordable Housing Near Huntington Metro Opened By Wesley Housing

HUNTINGTON, VA — A new affordable housing community is open near the Huntington Metro, an area with numerous new or upcoming developments.

The Arden is a 126-unit community located at 2317 Huntington Avenue from affordable housing developer Wesley Housing. The community offers 10 efficiency units, 26 one-bedroom units, 76 two-bedroom units and 14 three-bedroom units. This includes 11 fully accessible units. The community includes 7,500 square feet of space on the ground floor that will become Wesley Housing’s new main office.

The community is available to families with household incomes at or below 40 to 80 percent of the area median income. In Fairfax County, 80 percent of the area median income is $63,000 for one person and $90,000 for a household of four.

Shelley Murphy, the recently retired president and CEO of Wesley Housing, said at a ribbon cutting Friday the average household income for Arden residents is around $40,000.

In addition, there are 12 vouchers from the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority for extremely low-income households and people with developmental disabilities. Residents began moving in earlier in January.

"The Arden is a true representation of our vision for a holistic approach to housing," said Kamilah McAfee, the new president and CEO of Wesley Housing, in a statement. "This property offers more than a roof over heads, it provides a critical foundation along with wrap-around services that will strengthen and stabilize households in our community for years to come."

According to Murphy, the Arden replaced a 12-unit apartment building that dated back to 1950. The Arden was 75 percent leased as of Friday.

The Arden sits one block from the Huntington Metro station and minutes from the Capital Beltway and Route 1, connecting residents with key commuter routes in the DC region. Amenities at the community include a community room with computers, free in-unit and common area Wi-Fi, a courtyard patio, bike storage, on-site laundry facilities and garage parking. Wesley Property Management is providing management and an on-site resident services team.

Nonprofit partners Our Stomping Ground and Community Residences Inc. will offer supportive services to residents with developmental disabilities or mental health needs. Food for Others will provide on-site food services for residents. Another service available to families will be employment specialists.

Jeff McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, noted how collaboration with nonprofits contributes to the county's doubled affordable housing goal of 10,000 units by 2034.

"For us, it's always an easy decision to work with nonprofits, because we can stretch our public dollars so much further in the way of services," said McKay at the Friday ribbon cutting. "If you look at the projects that we're building that are part of that new 10,000 goal, not only are they high quality, not only are they scattered throughout Fairfax County so that every corner of the county can benefit from affordable housing, but they are very technical, difficult projects to put together."

McKay outlined the equity benefit of providing high-quality affordable housing and environmental benefit of housing near transit. On the economic side, it provides housing for people who can fill open employment positions.

"The number one thing [we hear from employers] is we can't find enough employees. One of the reasons that's a challenge is because too many people can't afford to live here in Fairfax County or even Northern Virginia," said McKay. "If we're going to attack the economic elements and economic concerns that our community faces right now, we can't do it without providing affordable housing for the workforce that our employers need to fill these jobs."

In the Richmond Highway corridor of Fairfax County, revitalization efforts are underway as new mixed-use developments open and the county plans a Bus Rapid Transit system.

"Change around the Metro station like this is essential," said Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck at the ribbon cutting. "You don't have walk very far to find three or four more developments that not only are here now but are coming...they're coming because this area is radically changing to support the future of the Washington metropolitan area, in particular the future of Fairfax County and the Mount Vernon District."

Wesley Housing has been working on developing affordable housing in the DC region for 49 years. Today, it has over 2,200 units, 626 of which are in Fairfax County.

For more information about the Arden, visit www.livethearden.com.