On June 11, SupportWorks Housing hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and grand opening for Cool Lane Commons, our latest – and largest – supportive housing project in Virginia.
Located at 1900 Cool Lane in Henrico County on the border of Richmond’s East End, Cool Lane Commons is an 86-unit mixed-income apartment community for unhoused and low-income residents from the Richmond region. All residents have incomes at or below 50% of the Area Median Income.
The ceremony included remarks from Henrico County, the City of Richmond, and SupportWorks leadership.
“Today, we’re so excited to be here formally celebrating all the work that has made these 86 new supportive apartments possible. 86 apartments that will move our region measurably closer to our mission and goal of solving homelessness,” said SupportWorks Board Chair Jason Snook. “We’re celebrating every opportunity we have to end someone’s experience of homelessness or housing instability.”
“Our inclement weather shelter and emergency shelter, that’s our emergency room. This is building the ICU. This is building the recovery center that we need for individuals and families to be able to get back on their feet and to be stable and supported,” said City of Richmond Chief Administrative Officer Lincoln Saunders.
Each unit is at least 500 square feet and includes a private full bathroom and kitchen with full-size appliances. 13 units are fully accessible. The building, which is approximately 90,000 square feet, contains a large community room with a kitchen, a resident computer lab, a phone room for resident use, a fitness room, laundry facilities, a front desk, and offices for supportive services and property management staff. It is built to EarthCraft Gold standards. The building contains a photovoltaic solar array of 180 solar panels which offsets approximately 20% of the building’s energy load.
The site on Cool Lane was identified as SupportWorks’ next Richmond-based development project in March 2018. The former Seven Hills Health Care Center had been vacant since 2008. Rezoning was approved in March 2019. Fundraising included several successful rounds of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit applications, 2019 and 2021. Construction began in May 2022 and was completed in January 2024.
“This is how you revitalize a neighborhood and build a better future for everyone. This is how you give those in our community the support and resources they need to be successful,” said Henrico Supervisor Roscoe D. Cooper III, Fairfield District. “Cool Lane Commons represents a collective win for our community and a great place for residents to call home.”
Total development costs were approximately $24 million, with funding provided by local, state, and federal funds as well as private funds. All 86 units have Project Based Vouchers from Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority.
“The reinvestment that we and so many other partners have made together here is lifting the surrounding community and helping to address our tremendous need for high-quality, safe and affordable housing,” said Henrico Board of Supervisors Chairman Tyrone E. Nelson, Varina District.
Cool Lane Commons is also home to SupportWorks’ administrative headquarters, known as the Bren Center. It is named after two of SupportWorks’ original founders and earliest supporters, Karl and Jane Bren. The separate office space was funded independently from the apartments.
A key supporter and on-site partner of the project is the Faith Community Baptist Church (FCBC), located across the street from Cool Lane Commons, with leadership from Founding Visionary Dr. Patricia Gould-Champ. Cool Lane Commons contains a neighborhood resource center – the Imani Community Resource Center – operated by Community In Development (CID, Inc.), FCBC’s nonprofit community development corporation. Through the Imani Community Resource Center, CID will continue delivering their critical neighborhood services, which include food and urban farming programs, workforce development, and HIV/AIDS prevention education.
“Homelessness is solvable,” SupportWorks Executive Director Allison Bogdanović said. “Supportive housing – like Cool Lane Commons, like our future building on Rady Street – is the solution. We know that ending homelessness is possible because we are doing it every day with support from partners like you.”
Thank you to all our funders, government and community partners, and supporters who helped make this project possible, and to everyone who attended the ceremony!