Army Barracks Become Senior Housing

Former Army barracks have been reimagined as affordable senior housing at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

The new 80-unit community is one of the pieces in the redevelopment of 66 acres at the base into The Parks at Walter Reed, an ambitious master-planned community that will feature market-rate housing, retail, offices, and open space.

Centralizing and prioritizing affordable housing as part of the new amenity-rich community is special and shows the commitment of all the parties to make it happen, says Caroline Kenney, managing director of public-private ventures at Urban Atlantic Development, which teamed with Hines, 1750 K Affordable Partners, and Housing Up to develop Abrams Hall Senior.

Sixty-four apartments target seniors at or below 50% of the area median income (AMI), and 16 permanent supportive housing units serve seniors at or below 30% of the AMI.

As one of the site’s first redevelopment projects, the $26.7 million Abrams Hall Senior is helping lead the way to bring utilities and other infrastructure to the formerly secured Army base.

At the heart of the community, the vast Abrams Hall building has been subdivided to allow for multiple projects, including a planned affordable assisted-living facility. “If someone in Abrams Hall Senior reaches the point where independent living is no longer a safe option for them, we would love for them to stay on the same campus, in the same building, and move into assisted-living,” Kenney says.

Through D.C.’s Solar for All program, the development benefits from over a half a megawatt of solar panels on the roof of the building. Savings from energy generated is used to offset energy costs for affordable housing at Abrams Hall as well as benefiting other locations in the city.