NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The New Hanover Community Endowment announced Monday 14 awards totaling $14.4 million as part of its $19 million affordable housing investment strategy.
READ MORE: ‘We can’t build our way out of this’: NHC Endowment addresses affordable housing, other questions
A majority of the grants will go toward production costs of projects already underway, such as the Salvation Army’s new shelter, and core operations of several area nonprofits — with one notable exception.
New H.O.P.E CDC, a nonprofit founded by Pastor Rob Campbell of New Beginnings Church, received the second-largest award with $3.06 million. The money will go toward purchasing and renovating 12 units at 605 Nixon St. on downtown Wilmington’s Northside.
In a text message shared with Port City Daily, Campbell said the purchase fits New H.O.P.E’s mission to serve marginalized communities, connecting community members with housing, education, rehabilitation and economic development. The nonprofit is also behind an 68-unit senior affordable living complex and 128-unit workforce housing apartments under development in Castle Hayne.
The new development will be called New H.O.P.E. on Nixon and will undergo a full improvement on property maintenance.
“As part of this vision, we will reduce rents from the current $1,800 to a more affordable range of $900 to $1,050, based on income,” Campbell said.
Campbell added current tenants will not be displaced and all existing leases will be honored when New H.O.P.E takes over the property.
“This transformative project is possible thanks to the generous support of the Endowment, whose vision is to bring lasting change to the entire community,” Campbell wrote.
However, the remaining grants take a less “transformative” approach and instead largely boost ongoing work. PCD asked the NHCE Network Officer Terri Burhans if Monday’s grant announcement lived up to the endowment’s mission of “transformative change” and if the remaining millions would go toward new projects.
PCD received a response from the endowment’s communications director, Kevin Maurer.
“It’s difficult to do transformational work if you’re worrying about paying the bills because you don’t have time to think about how to solve the issue,” he wrote in an email to PCD. “Core operating support gives our partners the ability to think strategically, which will lead to transformational solutions.”
The largest grant recipient announced Monday is Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity with $3.5 million going to two projects. Thirty-five new homes are already slated for Haven Place, a Habitat neighborhood in Castle Hayne; money will also go to infrastructure at Legacy Landing, the organization’s first townhome development with 14 units.
The Haven will be constructed on land donated by New Hanover County. Executive Director Lauren McKenzie told PCD the organization was already leveraging its other funding sources to get both projects moving — Legacy Landing construction will go out to bid later this fall — and the endowment’s grant comes just in time to help.
“We appreciate the endowment’s confidence in us to steward these funds to serve many families in New Hanover County,” McKenzie said. “We will be able to leverage these funds to serve essential workers in our community.”
Habitat for Humanity homeowners are required to assist in the construction of their home; in return, residents are not required to pay more than 30% of their income in mortgage costs.
Once connected with their plat of land, families, assisted with Habitat volunteers, can start construction on the homes, which take around four months to finish.
Another grantee undergoing housing development is the Wilmington Realtors Foundation, awarded $650,000. The money will help close the land purchase and acquire permitting for Pierson Pointe, a 48-townhome community planned for Carolina Beach Road. The townhomes will be offered for purchase around $250,000 (the average townhome price in New Hanover County is $466,000). There will also be covenants mandating they be owner-occupied and kept affordable in perpetuity.
John Smist and his team have been working on bringing the affordable housing community to life for half a decade. It has twice applied for funding from New Hanover County’s Workforce Housing Services Program, both times denied. When the county rejected Smist’s $1.5 million request a year ago, staff noted the project was still in the design and fundraising phase.
“There have been donations made, but we’re talking, you know, a $10,000 donation,” Smist said. “But this is that first significant hurdle that really is kickstarting this project and making it a reality that this is going to get done.”
The next step is extending sewer and water to the property. The foundation has again applied for county funds, which will go to a vote on Oct. 7; Smist said he was hopeful the buildings are in place by the end of 2025.
Though not affordable housing, the Salvation Army received $1 million to aid the construction of its 75-bed homeless shelter at 1120 N. 30th St. The nonprofit was forced to shutter and relocate last year, posing a major blow to the area’s shelter bed inventory and the number of people unhoused increased.
With the help of the endowment grant and $4.3 million from the City of Wilmington, Maj. Ken Morris said the new Salvation Army building, estimated around $12 million, is just about covered.
“This million certainly helps go a long way,” Morris said. “We’re basically building this thing with the plans of not having a mortgage…and a goal is to actually begin raising money for a second building.”
The vision for the second building includes a gymnasium and classrooms for the Salvation Army team to continue its life skills offerings (budgeting, job interviews, GED, English language). Though the first building is designed to convert space into emergency shelter for disaster relief, a second building will offer even more room for those in need. Morris estimates the second building will cost less than the first as well.
“We’re aggressively out there raising funds because if we could move right from one building to the construction of the next, you’d save a lot of money by having all the crews out there,” Morris said.
But as for the endowment grant, Morris said it actually puts the Salvation Army in a “much more solid place.”
Aside from its affordable housing strategy, the endowment also announced three grants as part of its rolling application award. One of which is housing-related; Coastal Horizons was awarded $200,000 in matching funds to its permanent supportive housing program.
Better Is Possible, offering community support and development in Wilmington, received $150,000 for a year-round mentorship and skills training program for healthcare career pathways. LINC was given $200,000 in support of its L.I.T.E. program, a structured enrichment program designed for African American males up to age 24.
PCD contacted each organization for comment on their grant award.
The endowment’s other grantees announced Monday include the following organizations:
- Cape Fear Collective: $ 900,000 for core operations
- Cape Fear Collective (Block by Block Production): $ 837,000 to renovate 8 housing units
- Cape Fear Community Land Trust: $ 200,000
- Eden Village: $ 300,000 for core operations
- Financial Protection Law Center: $ 300,000 for core operations
- Domestic Violence Shelter and Services: $ 594,619 for core operations
- Coastal Horizons Center: $ 600,000 core operations for youth services
- WARM NC: $ 600,000 for core operations
- Good Shepherd Center: $ 1,655,000 for core operations along with rapid rehousing and housing retention programs
- One Christian Network: $ 225,000 for core operations
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com.
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