For Residents, Bronx Affordable Apartments Defy Belief
Capital One and Webster Residence are providing affordable housing to formerly homeless single adults in the Bronx community
This story is highlighted in Capital One’s 2019-2020 Corporate Social Responsibility report. To view the full report, click here.
Despite rising rents and developer interest – the hallmarks of gentrification for the city’s affordable housing crisis – partnerships between Capital One and nonprofit developers are yielding results that transform lives.
At nonprofit Breaking Ground’s Webster Residence, which opened in May 2018, resident Cheryl Williams says her church friends have given the building a “thumbs up.”
Webster Residence consists of 170 studio apartments for low-income and formerly unsheltered individuals. The building provides a place to call home through a landscaped courtyard and a green roof and amenities like a gym, in-house laundry, multi-purpose room, and computer lab.
“I couldn’t believe it when I first saw it,” says Williams, who had been through the city’s shelter system multiple times before applying for one of the units.
“The Bronx is important to us and we’re committed to using our resources to create stable, secure housing for all New Yorkers,” says Desiree Francis, Managing Vice President and Head of Community Finance at Capital One. “We know that successful housing goes beyond bricks-and-mortar, that’s why we invest in resident services.”
Part of the innovation at Webster Residence are the supportive services that residents receive, including medical care, case management, psychiatric care, and more. Capital One provided a multi-year, social purpose investment to help fund these services, as well as a $30 million letter of credit and $26 million equity investment for building the development.
“Capital One came into our life over a decade ago and has been an investor in a few of our buildings,” says Breaking Ground CEO Brenda Rosen. “They really care and get involved with us.” Rosen calls such financial support the “secret sauce to supportive housing,” and Francis agrees.
Capital One is on a mission to change banking for good. To be authentic and impactful, our goals for our customers, associates and our communities must be clearly linked. Our 2019-2020 Corporate Social Responsibility Report illustrates this commitment. Learn more about Capital One’s commitments, here.
