H Street Community Development Corporation CEO Ken Brewer, along with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Ward 4 Councilman Brandon Todd and other District dignitaries on March 6 celebrated the groundbreaking of the Todd A. Lee Senior Residences at Kennedy Street.
The 38-unit affordable rental apartment building bears the name of Lee, a former executive director and CEO of DC Housing Finance Agency who died unexpectedly in January. Under Todd Lee’s leadership, DCHFA partnered with the Bowser administration to increase the production and preservation of affordable rental housing and became a co-administrator of the Home Purchase Assistance Program (HPAP) to help increase the number of first-time homeowners in the District.
“Todd’s sudden passing brings us really deep sadness as he was one of the most creative and accessible leaders to affordable housing partners in the District,” Brewer said in a statement. “He was with us when we announced the groundbreaking for Livingston Place at Southern and always supported our projects and goals in affordable housing. It is fitting this new senior affordable housing development, located in his home ward, will bear his name and help us get closer to achieving 36,000 new homes by 2025.”
Dantes Partners is the lead developer for the project which also includes Gilbane Development and a team that brings skill in leveraging creative financing tools to create housing opportunities for individuals and families of modest means.