New Orleans, LA—The Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC) joined developers and community leaders to celebrate the reuse and revitalization of the Louisiana Avenue Firehouse as an affordable housing complex and early childhood education center.
Originally built in 1913, the building served as the community’s firehouse on Louisiana Avenue. Eventually, the building became a polling location but fell into blight for over 30 years. Now, the building has been restored to provide 7 affordable rental housing units with an education center located on the bottom floor.
The goal for this project aimed to provide affordable housing and education opportunities; two components needed in cities to thrive. “The Louisiana Avenue Firehouse shows us that demolition of historic buildings is not always the answer,” explains LHC Executive Director Kevin Delahoussaye. “Through LHC’s Rental Restoration and Development Program, we bring buildings like Louisiana Avenue Firehouse back to life to assist the community, address issues, and enhance a better quality of life.”
LHC’s partnership with the Office of Community Development Disaster Recovery (OCD-DR) allowed federal funds to come to fruition to create the Rental Restoration and Development Program (RRDP), which would help communities come back into commerce after 2020-2021 natural disasters. After Hurricane Ida, the work was imminent in the New Orleans area to reestablish affordable housing opportunities. LHC awarded $725,000 to restore the historic building.
“Projects like the Louisiana Avenue Firehouse demonstrate what is possible when disaster recovery resources are put to work creating lasting benefits for Louisiana communities,” said Gina Campo, executive director of the Louisiana Office of Community Development. “Through our partnership with the Louisiana Housing Corporation, $725,000 in federal disaster recovery funds helped convert a long-blighted historic building into seven affordable homes and an early childhood education center. It’s a great example of how state, local, and private partners can transform vacant properties into vibrant community assets that strengthen neighborhoods and improve quality of life.”
The project also received funding and support from Enterprise Community Partners, the City of New Orleans, the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Enhanced Capital, and U.S. Bank.
“We’re really proud of this project, because it addresses two of the city’s most urgent needs—early childhood education and affordable housing—and it’s also an example of how public and private partnerships can work at the state and local level,” said People’s Housing + CEO Oji Alexander. “We’ve worked with LHC on single-family homes. This is our first multifamily project, and we look forward to future collaborations.”
Developers of the project included People’s Housing + and Alembic Community Development. Studio Kiro acted as architect, while contracting was done by CDW Services. Satsuma Property Management will handle necessary management.
To learn more about this property, please visit the People’s Housing + website.
