The Community Foundation of Howard County established an agency fund with Community Homes Housing Inc. using $30 million from the organization’s sale of five Harper’s Choice and Wilde Lake housing units to Enterprise Homes. Community Homes Housing will use the fund, the largest ever established with the Community Foundation, to support the development and preservation of affordable housing in Howard County.
“We’re committed to Howard County and helping to provide quality affordable housing to residents over the long-term,” said Dan Kelliher, president of the board of Community Homes Housing. “That’s why we chose the Community Foundation, which has the resources, experience and capacity to manage the sale proceeds as a charitable fund for the benefit of the residents of Howard County.”
In 1969, Interfaith Housing Initiatives built the first five low-income housing units in Columbia following founder James Rouse’s vision. The properties were owned and managed by Community Homes Housing, formerly known as Interfaith Housing Initiatives, until November 2017, when they were sold to Enterprise Homes, which will redevelop them into mixed-income housing with low-income and market-priced rental units.
“We couldn’t have found a better buyer than Enterprise Homes, which shares our commitment to preserving affordable housing in Howard County,” Kelliher said. “We look forward to supporting Enterprise in the redevelopment of the properties as a part of the revitalization of the Columbia Town Center area.”
Community Homes Housing will work with the Community Foundation of Howard County to manage the funds and make loans and grants to support the creation and preservation of affordable housing in Howard County.
“We share Community Homes Housing’s mission of supporting Howard County, which is one reason we’re so excited about establishing this fund,” said Scot Millen, chair of the board of Community Foundation of Howard County. “As the largest fund in our history, it represents our growing capacity to support large initiatives in the county that are impactful.”
Enterprise Homes Executive Vice President Christine Madigan said, “The opportunity to enhance these communities with new amenities and energy efficient upgrades, among others, is also an opportunity for us to share in our founder, Jim Rouse’s, vision for Columbia, ‘a garden for the growing of people.’”