New Affordable Housing in Edison, New Jersey - 120 Units Become Homes for Low Income and Homeless Families

HUD NJ FOD Maria Maio-Messano met Steve Elflein a formerly homeless tenant who described how this new development changed his life.

Paul Myers holding his oldest child expressed his gratitude for being able to move in with his with wife and two children after being homeless for months.

HUD New Jersey Field Office Director Maria Maio-Messano joined Monarch Housing Associates to celebrate the grand opening of Kilmer Homes I & II, 120 units of affordable housing for low and moderate income families in Edison, New Jersey.

Kilmer Homes received Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG- DR) funds, as well as HUD Housing Choice Section 8 Vouchers that subsidize the rents of tenants with incomes at or below 60% Area Median Income, up to $49,920 in annual income for a two-person household. Thirty apartments were rented to homeless households. Residents of these 30 apartments have access to case management and service coordination through Triple C Housing, Inc.

"By providing a veteran preference and renting 30 apartments to homeless families, Kilmer Homes is assisting HUD in reaching its goal of eliminating homelessness and veteran homelessness in New Jersey," said Maria Maio-Messano, HUD New Jersey Field Office Director. "HUD's Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, Continuum of Care homeless services, and Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery funding also contributed to this project, and I am pleased that Kilmer Homes has given a preference to Hurricane Sandy victims in need of a permanent place to call home."

Attendees heard from Steve Elflein and Paul Myer two formerly homeless tenants who shared their stories of how the opportunity to live at Kilmer Homes changed their lives.

The development of Kilmer Homes I & II was also funded by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency (HMFA), Middlesex County Housing First Capital funds, and equity from the sale of federal low-income housing tax credits through Enterprise Community Investment and TD Bank.

Kilmer Homes I & II was jointly developed by The Alpert Group, LLC, Edison Affordable Housing, Inc., and Monarch Housing Associates, Inc. The Alpert Group and Edison Housing Authority provide on-going property management services. The Township of Edison was critical in helping the developers to acquire the Kilmer Homes I & II site from the federal government.

Kilmer Homes is an integral part of the Middlesex County's 10-year plan to end homelessness and the 30 units for the homeless made a major step in ending homelessness in Middlesex County. Middlesex County has also signed on to the Mayor's Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, an Obama Administration initiative to end homelessness and veteran homelessness in the nation.

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