DHIC Receives Grant for New Senior Living Community

This January, DHIC was the recipient of a $610,000 grant from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to go toward Milner Commons, a new 156-unit apartment community for seniors aged 55 and older. The opportunity for this grant to help us build a future community, however, was only possible due to a past project.

After the successful completion of Capital Towers, in partnership with The Presbyterian Homes Inc., DHIC was approached by the Presbytery of New Hope about a new opportunity to build affordable housing for local seniors. The organization, which oversees Presbyterian churches around the state, had a congregation that was dissolving, which sat on land on New Bern Ave. The congregation wanted the property to be used to help continue its mission of supporting low-income seniors in the community, and DHIC seemed like a natural fit to make it happen.

The grant money from ARPA will go towards asbestos abatement in the existing buildings on the property and the demolition process which will make way for the new residential apartment buildings. We’ve also received $3.8 million from the City of Raleigh to help cover the costs of the new buildings and amenities on the site.

While we’re excited about the future of this project and how it will help the lives of seniors in the community, it’s also important that we honor its history. The original church on the property was designed by well-known Raleigh architect, F. Carter Williams and we are committed to using elements from the original building in the new design.

Senior Project Manager, Kayla Strampe, explains, “We wanted to find a way to honor the history of the land and the church that’s helping to make this project possible, so we’ll be using brick, pews, and stained-glass windows from the original church in the new buildings.” The community will also honor Henry Herman Milner, who originally donated the land to the church and is buried on the property with a memorial around his gravesite.

In addition to an outdoor area for residents, the community will include a fitness center, multi-purpose room, computer business center, and onsite services to help residents age in place in their new apartments. The property is also close to the new Wake Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), so residents will have easy access to public transportation.

We plan to begin construction on the community this summer and expect the interest list to open in the Fall of 2023. You can access the latest updates on Milner Commons here.