This June marked the 41st anniversary of the Diocese of Camden’s mission of providing affordable housing, and there is no better anniversary gift than the groundbreaking of the affordable 74-rental unit Village at St. Peter’s in Atlantic County’s Pleasantville for very low to moderate income seniors on Aug. 12, 10:30 a.m.
The diocese’s Department of Housing began in 1969 to address the growing needs of seniors, and in 2000 became a certified non-profit organization known as The Diocesan Housing Services of the Diocese of Camden (DHSC). Its mission is to provide quality affordable housing to low-to-moderate income households within New Jersey’s six southern counties.
Underlying DHSC’s mission is the goal of pursuing real estate development and property management based on an ‘Affordable Luxury’ standard. The DHSC owns and manages 637 ‘Affordable Luxury’ rental housing units for very low-to-moderate income persons today.
Unfortunately, the affordable housing industry has been unable to maintain the pace of increasing demand due to discriminatory practices (such as the exclusionary zoning mentioned by the New Jersey bishops’ recent statement to the General Assembly).
The DHSC affordable luxury housing for very low-to moderate-income persons is designed for a growing senior population plus households of police officers, firefighters, secretaries, early-career persons and others, and allows them to stay close to their families and friends in New Jersey.
Some of these residents were former homeowners or renters priced out of the housing market due to skyrocketing housing costs and/or housing meltdown. At Davenport Village (another DHSC housing development), a single-parent earning very low-income could never imagine seeing her two children grow and learn in a safe, well-managed, and healthy environment like children of higher income families were it not for affordable luxury housing.
Second, the ‘Affordable Luxury’ standard means residences are professionally developed and managed beyond the ‘safe, decent, and sanitary’ standard requirement. This includes finding and utilizing supplemental funding to deliver necessary amenities, social services, and a superior physical and social environment for residents, plus professional property management.
Stonegate exemplifies this best. Residents tell families and friends they live at the “Stonegate Country Club” because of the superior physical and social residential environment.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires a maximum room size of 540 square feet, but Donnelly Wagner Nelson Rebilas Architects found the bedroom too small for couples and people in wheelchairs. Hence, they were able to increase the room size by two to three feet using supplemental funding gathered by the DHSC. This made a large difference in comfort for residents.
Supplemental funding was also used to provide more residential amenities (e.g. community room), and the building’s physical exterior and interior were designed to make residents feel at home. A professionally developed affordable housing that is managed beyond the ‘safe, decent, and sanitary’ standard requirement with attractive, high quality, cost-effective environment clearly offers more return of tax investment. At the minimum, there are positive psychological implications for its residents.
After all, isn’t housing more than an investment, and more than a physical building that provides only shelter and security? The quality of a person’s living environment defines his or her experience of living in a home, which influences a person’s dignity. If low income persons tend to find poorly designed, poorly serviced, affordable housing only in disinvested urban areas, society is then reinforcing economic and racial segregation.
Not supporting “Affordable Luxury” housing consequently neglects the church’s social mission of providing charity to the needy. “Affordable Luxury” housing helps empower residents and preserve their dignity. Consider the senior and former homeowner, now a Stonegate resident, who can stay near family because of the DHSC’s “Affordable Luxury” housing. Or the mother and her children at Davenport would have lost their right to live in good, quality housing they can call home if not for DHSC’s ‘Affordable Luxury’ housing.
Affordable housing ensures very low to moderate-income households can live in a clean, decent, and sanitary shelter with money left for other necessities. Affordable luxury housing allows people a better opportunity to live happily and with dignity in a place they can proudly call home.
Affordable housing affects everyone. It invests taxpayer dollars by supporting the livelihoods of firefighters, teachers, police officers and other current and retired workers that make the economy’s backbone. The mandatory “safe, decent, and sanitary” standard provides only the home’s basic purpose; but providing “Affordable Luxury” housing provides more than shelter and security using the same amount of public monies. It uplifts over 12.6 million households by telling them they can maintain their dignity and pride, overcome poverty, and economic and racial segregation. It further tells them they have the right to live in a good quality living environment.
In the words of U.S. Catholic bishops: “How we organize our society—in economics and politics, in law and policy— directly affects the common good and the capacity of individuals to develop their full potential. Every person and association has a right and a duty to participate actively in shaping society and to promote the well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable.”
If our society continues denying affordable housing, we are denying very low to moderate income households the potential to overcome financial hardships and poverty; their fundamental right to stay near family and friends; and to live in housing that provides more than safety and security.
Last year, Pope Benedict XVI invited disciples of Christ and persons of good will “to meet the needs of the poor and to take whatever practical steps are possible to help them.” Catholics can accept his invitation and step closer in creating peace and justice by actively supporting “Affordable Luxury” housing. Ultimately, “Affordable Luxury” housing becomes an asset to all New Jersey residents and surrounding communities and neighborhoods.
More information about the Diocesan Housing Services Corporation and its housing developments are found at the Diocese of Camden’s web page at http://www.camdendiocese.org under “Housing Services” within “Health/Social/Mission” or on Facebook.
Kwan Hui is Housing Scholar/Project Development Intern Diocesan Housing Services of The Diocese of Camden, Inc.
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