Mississippi Breaks Ground on Solar-powered Affordable Housing
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Photo courtesy of Duvall Decker Architects, P.A.
The city of Jackson and the Jackson Housing Authority will celebrate the groundbreaking of a multi-phase investment to provide healthy housing opportunities and contribute to neighborhood revitalization.
The groundbreaking is being held today at the corner of Livingston Street and Lamar Street, one of the three project sites located in the North Midtown neighborhood near downtown Jackson. The ceremony marks the beginning of Phase 1 of a development planned as part of the North Midtown Neighborhood Master Plan. The Master Plan was completed last year by the neighborhood residents, the North Midtown Community Development Corporation and the Jackson Housing Authority.
The $3.49 million project is comprised of 16 new sustainable housing units (8 duplexes), and includes additional site and infrastructure improvements. Funds for the project were made available through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The new 1,600 square foot, one and two story housing units being built in Phase 1 are sustainable, livable, secure and economical. Some of the amenities include:
- thermal aluminum windows,
- Energy Star appliances,
- water-conserving fixtures,
- solar panel energy generation,
- smart meters provided by Entergy MS in partnership with Smart Synch,
- landscaping buffers, and
- secure service alleys.
The project planning, by Duvall Decker Architects, P.A. with the Jackson Housing Authority, sought to include sustainability, energy efficiency, durability and livability improvements while remaining economical. The project was competitively bid on March 11 with seven bidders. The low bidder and general contractor for the project is CRG Residential, LLC. The project is expected to create approximately 110 jobs during the 12 months of construction.
The Jackson Housing Authority and the project specify the contractor must comply with the Equal Opportunity requirements of Section 3 of the HUD Act of 1968. This requires the contractor to employ local, low and very low income persons. The Housing Authority and the North Midtown Community Development Corporation have collected the resumes of over 40 able individuals. These resumes will be provided to the contractor as potential workers to employ.
“We’re very excited about this new housing development and its contribution to Jackson. In addition to providing needed durable, sustainable, affordable housing, we’re pleased that the project will also provide new jobs in Jackson,” said Sheila Jackson, executive director of the Housing Authority. “We’re also proud to be building the first solar powered housing development in the state.”