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PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Philadelphia Housing
Authority officially dedicated Greater Grays Ferry Estates today, a
554-home affordable housing development that PHA believes will
change the fabric of South Philadelphia. The new development sits
on a 40-acre site previously occupied by the old Tasker Homes
project, just off the Schuylkill Expressway. PHA Executive Director
Carl Greene hailed the opening as a turning point for the
neighborhood.
"Changing the name of this development symbolizes a change in
thinking about affordable housing partnerships. Grays Ferry Estates
will become a force for unity among all residents of this
community," Greene said. The construction of Greater Grays Ferry
Estates represents an investment of $165 million dollars, a
combination of federal funding and private investment. The site
will offer a total of 250 homeownership opportunities; 125 of the
homes in Phase Two to be completed by the end of next year - will
be available for sale. In fifteen years an additional 125 homes
from Phase One will be for sale, so that the residents moving into
these rental homes now will have the option to buy later.
Phase One, opening today, includes 245 homes, 25 of which are
completely handicap accessible. Unlike projects of the past,
Greater Grays Ferry Estates will be a mixed income community where
low and moderate-income families live together on the same site.
Families with incomes as high as 50% of the areas median income
($34,400 for a family of four) are eligible to rent or buy at the
site, and that income ceiling may be raised for Phase Two. Along
with the 554 new homes, the site will include new underground
utility lines, new streets and a senior services center open to all
income-eligible residents of the Grays Ferry community. Carl Greene
said the senior services center represents PHAs partnership with
the neighborhood. "There was a time when Grays Ferry and the PHA
site were divided. By making our new senior services center
available to the community at-large we are laying the groundwork
for Grays Ferry Estates to become an integral part of the greater
Grays Ferry community," Greene said.
PHA is making its affordable housing even more affordable for
some residents by including solar power panels on 18 of the
southern facing homes. PHA estimates those residents will save
$400-$500 per year in energy costs. The development will also
include a new workforce-training center, which will house the
agencys renowned Pre-apprenticeship training program in the
building trades. Several dignitaries joined in todays celebration.
Among them were Mayor John Street who talked about how Greater
Grays Ferry Estates provides a major boost to the Citys plan for
neighborhood transformation, and Congressman Chaka Fattah who spoke
of the continuing battle to provide federal dollars to help build
affordable housing.
U.S. Housing and Urban Development Assistant Secretary Steven
Nesmith, a native of PHAs Abbottsford Homes in East Falls, praised
the collaborative efforts between his agency and PHA in bringing
the new development to fruition. Governor Ed Rendell could not make
the event, but called in his congratulations for the hundreds
gathered.
About PHA
PHA is transforming public housing in the city of Philadelphia.
As the nation's fourth largest public housing agency serving more
than 78,000 residents, PHA is the first housing authority in the U.
S. designated by the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) of
the National Association of Realtors as an "Accredited Management
Organization." This designation is awarded to firms engaged in
property management that have met IREM's high standards in the
areas of education, experience, integrity and financial
stability.
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