Habitat SKKC, in partnership with African Community Housing & Development (ACHD), celebrated the groundbreaking of our second affordable homeownership project in the Rainier Valley. On August 5, a crowd of nearly 100 people gathered on a lot at 6740 MLK Jr. Way S. that will soon hold a mid-rise building made up of 31 new 1, 2, and 3-bedroom condos.
Our joint venture and partnership with ACHD, which began in August 2023, will result in 70 new and permanently affordable homes along the MLK Way corridor. ACHD is a nonprofit that empowers Seattle’s African Diaspora community by building culturally rooted health and housing stability in the region. Last June, we broke ground at 3601 MLK Jr. Way South, the first of our three projects with ACHD.
The support of the community that came out last year and again this year helps sustain our momentum on a long-term project. We are three years into our partnership with ACHD, and already so much groundwork that has been laid down. It’s not only in the literal breaking of ground that was the cause for the day’s gathering, but in the connections we are building with ACHD throughout the Rainier Valley in churches, non-profits, and all the third places that make up a neighborhood.
Bilan Aden, Vice President of ACHD, opened the program by singing the theme to Mister Roger’s Neighborhood, repeating the refrain, “Won’t you be my neighbor?” She acknowledged both the Duwamish Tribe and their ancestral land we stood on and those people in Spokane, Washington who are currently facing destructive wildfires at home—because everybody in Washington state is our neighbor.
The fires in Eastern Washington also weighed heavily on Senator Rebecca Saldaña, 37th Legislative District, as well. During her speech, she reflected, “A home is not a guarantee; it’s a commitment.” She reminded the crowd that we are all neighbors, and that means taking care of those facing the threat of fire damage at their homes as much as those looking for homes of their own.
As a resident of the Rainier Valley, Senator Saldaña knows that the area is the intersection of many different cultures. “All are welcome here,” she emphasized. That notion is a big part of the work of the Black Home Initiative (BHI), a network of which we are proud to be members.
In his speech, Habitat SKKC CEO Brett D’Antonio explained our work with the BHI Network: “These projects center Black homeownership and upward mobility throughout South Seattle and South King County. We made this commitment when we joined the Black Home Initiative network and took a step towards correcting the systemic injustices that have blocked Black families from homeownership for too long.”
The residents of the Rainier Valley homes will soon experience first-hand the transformative power of permanence. With mortgages set at no more than 35% of their incomes, residents won’t be cost-burdened and living with the dread of the next rent increase.
Our important partnership with ACHD is rooted in community building and long-term investments in the Rainier Valley. Through our capacity-building and co-learning partnership model we will increase affordable housing regionwide to meet the needs of BIPOC and low-to-moderate income communities. We are building these homes in South Seattle so that the communities that have long been rooted here won’t be displaced.
This is an ambitious project that takes collaboration and dedication. Seattle City Councilmember Dionne Foster recognized this when she said, “At the core of this work is grit. Thank you to Habitat and ACHD for the grit and determination to make this project possible.”
Patience Malaba, Executive Director, Housing Development Consortium, who returned this year after speaking at last year’s groundbreaking, reflected on how far we’ve come in our work. She pointed at the pile of dirt that the day’s speakers would soon shovel as part of the groundbreaking ceremony and said, “We’re making progress. This is part of the progress.”