Partnerships
College Donates Land for Future Affordable Housing
RALEIGH, N.C. (August 17, 2021) - More affordable housing is on the way for residents in Wake County, thanks to a donation of land from Wake Technical Community College.
Wake County and Wake Tech leadership announced today that the property, located at 0 Chapanoke Road in Raleigh, will be developed into multi-family affordable housing. Units will be one, two and three bedrooms, with 30% of units set aside for Wake Tech students who meet specified criteria. The property is located directly across from Wake Tech’s Public Safety Education Campus.
“Our college is taking significant steps to address life challenges for our students, now more than ever,” said Wake Tech President Dr. Scott Ralls. “We’re helping to address food insecurity with our campus food pantries and grocery store gift cards, we’re addressing transportation insecurity with cards for free bus rides, and now we’re addressing housing insecurity by offering our students the opportunity for affordable housing.”
Wake Tech’s Board of Trustees unanimously voted to approve the donation of land at its June 15 board meeting. The Wake County Board of Commissioners accepted this donation during its Aug. 16 board meeting.
Located on a future Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor and just 0.04 miles from an existing bus top, this six-acre site will allow residents to easily travel to grocery stores, retail, pharmacies and medical care. A site evaluation determined there is an estimated 171,600 square feet of buildable space to develop. Wake Tech will use up to 1,000 square feet of space in the future building for programming.
“Land is something we’re not making any more of, so when an opportunity such as this presents itself, it’s a no-brainer,” said Wake County Board of Commissioners Chair Matt Calabria. “Not only is this property vital in meeting the affordable housing needs of the community, it’s in a prime location to connect people with important resources and amenities.”
The next step for this property is to issue a Request for Proposals to secure a developer. The timeline for completing the RFP process is end of 2021.
This action supports the Wake County Board of Commissioners’ goal of creating affordable housing opportunities and supporting efforts to end homelessness.
