Reed Cuts Ribbon Marking $2.6 Million Rescue of 32 Affordable Apartments in Narragansett
NARRAGANSETT, RI U.S. Senator Jack Reed today joined residents and neighbors of the former Driftwood Apartments to celebrate the $2.6 million rehabilitation of 32 affordable apartments once threatened with conversion to high-priced condominiums.Re-named Waters Edge, the development will remain affordable for 40 years. Residents will pay just 30 percent of their income for rent thanks to federal rental subsidies from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.I commend the team that saved these homes. A safe and decent home, like these in Narragansett, should not just be the American dream, it should be the American commitment, said Reed, who is the Ranking Member of the Senate Housing and Transportation subcommittee that oversees federal housing programs.Rhode Island Housing approved the $5.7 million financing package that enabled POAH to buy and rehabilitate the property after the previous owner had proposed demolishing the apartments to make way for condos. The decision protected 32 apartments in a town where just 2.75 percent of the housing is affordable.We work closely with every city and town to ensure there are affordable homes for every one who lives there. The impact of losing these apartments would have rippled through Narragansett for generations, said Richard Godfrey, executive director of Rhode Island Housing.