History: The City of Anderson owned Kennedy School, a former elementary school built in 1913. A for-profit developer had attempted to complete a tax credit development for seniors and had been unsuccessful. In 2006, a City Councilman asked Nehemiah if they would take a look at the project. Nehemiah got the school placed on the National Register of Historic Places. They built 20 one bedroom units in a two story new building built on land behind the school. Nehemiah converted the school and the auditorium building into 21 additional one bedroom housing units with community spaces in 2008.
Challenge: Do an adaptive re-use of the existing buildings while retaining their historic character. Utilize Section 8 Project-Based Assistance to make the units affordable for very low income seniors.
Solution: Nehemiah hired Martin Meek, an historical architectural specialist to work with Palmetto Architectural Group to complete the plans for the adaptive re-use. The Anderson Housing Authority utilized the Section 42 competitive round as the method for determining an award of 41 Section 8 Project-Based Voucheres for the project. Kennedy Place is now fully occupied and a major success.