Community Living Huntsville is trying to make the community more livable by increasing the affordable housing supply.
Jennifer Jerrett with the organization says they’re in talks with a property owner to buy land in downtown Huntsville which already holds multiple apartments, and build six to eight more units.
“There is a housing shortage, and people with developmental disabilities face 10 times longer waits than the average person for affordable housing,” says Jerrett. “And we are really seeing that from the perspective of the people we support here in our community. So, we can’t wait for change. We are invoking change. We can’t wait for governments to catch up.”
Jerrett says those units would not be limited to those with developmental disabilities, and anyone would be able to search for housing through the organization. She says the majority would be one-bedroom apartments, as that’s where the need is greatest.
According to Jerrett, the project is in its early stages, but they hope to have something concrete within the year.
“As of right now, I think we’re looking at roughly $1.8-million,” says Jerrett. “[We’re] still in negotiation stages, still trying to figure that out. Once we do have all those numbers and we’ve talked to all of the people involved, we will launch an actual campaign to raise money.”
She adds the not-for-profit is always taking donations at its website, if not for this project, then similar ones.
“Everything that we do right now is going towards housing,” says Jerrett. “It is a vital need in our community. Especially people with developmental disabilities, who are seeing wait lists of four to 10 years, closer to the 10-year mark.”
