What's that planned for Center Street near the Dome building and Oregon State Hospital?
Location: Center Street and 23rd Street
Description: A housing development planned for Center Street and 23rd Street NE is slated to bring as many as 200 affordable housing units to northeast Salem.
Developers are hoping to break ground on the Gussie Belle Brown Apartments, located near the Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency, the Dome building and the Oregon State Hospital, next summer.
The first phase of development will include 120 affordable housing units designed for families. The next phase will add as many as 80 more units and a child care facility.
Ben Pray, owner of Home First Development, said the location was a perfect site for an affordable housing complex — near public transit, close to service providers, centrally located and in a city that has been welcoming to development.
"The city has some policies that make it a little easier for affordable housing development, which is really important now given how challenging it is to build," Pray said. "They opened the door for the affordable housing development."
He said the apartments will be built with the needs of the community in mind, with lots of community space, a basketball court, bike path, in-unit washers and dryers, dog run, a playground, and community building.
Community need is what spurred the idea for the project to include an early child education or day care center.
"(Finding) day care is really tough for families in general, especially for families that need affordable housing," Pray said. "So that's a priority for us."
The units will be available for those making 60% or less of the area median income. Current rates mean this equates to $50,000 for a family of four.
The development is expected to cost $42.7 million. In July, the Oregon Housing and Community Services' Oregon Housing Stability Council approved $17.9 million in Local Innovation Fast Track funds for the project. It was among the 10 affordable housing developments across the state to receive money from the $103.5 million available in LIFT funds.
Green Light Development, in partnership with Home First Development, is also partnering with Salem-based, Black-led church Seed of Faith Ministries.
"SoFM’s leadership has a long track record of assisting people in moving into transitional housing, utilizing partnerships across different community organizations to provide affordable housing, employment opportunities, food, daily living needs, and health care," staff said in a report to the Housing Stability Council. "These existing partnerships will be critical to bringing stability and prosperity to future residents."
The development is set to be named after Gussie Belle Brown, a longtime Salem Hospital CNA and pastor of the State Street Church of God, who died in 2022.
Leadership will also partner with the Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency and Evergreen Community Partners to provide culturally responsive services.
MWVCAA Executive Director Jimmy Jones said the apartments would be a "game changer" for low-income people in the community.
"Many working families simply are not making enough to afford safe, decent housing," Jones said. "The need is especially acute among seniors, people with disabilities, and others on limited or fixed incomes who often have to choose between buying gas to get to work, paying for their medicines, or keeping clothes on their children."
He said Salem went through two decades of housing neglect, but city leadership now seems to understand the urgent need in the community and has worked to attract developers.
"We have extraordinary partnerships involved in this project and bring with us our expertise in homelessness and early learning for the families who will reside there," Jones said. "Projects like this one, in particular, support the urgency of culturally specific needs in our community, and help to make sure that every child in Salem has a fighting chance to live a good life and exit poverty.”
An archeological review of the site must be done before groundbreaking. Pray said they will comply with all city and state regulations and is optimistic it will not affect the construction timeline.
If construction goes as planned, the Gussie Belle Brown Apartments are expected to welcome families at the end of 2025.
Pray said the goal was to not just build affordable units but also to create safe and attractive homes that families and the community can be proud of.
"This is going to be a really beautiful, quality addition to the Salem community," he said.
Source: Home First Development/Oregon Housing and Community Services
Is there something under construction you'd like to tell us about or find out more about? Contact reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: What's planned for Center Street near Oregon State Hospital?
