Durham County
The former Army Reserve Center at 1228 Carroll Street
Nonprofit housing developer CASA has been selected by the U.S. General Services Administration to develop the former Army Reserve Center on Carroll Street into affordable housing.
The site was declared surplus property in December 2017, making it subject to the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, which gives first dibs on surplus federal property to uses that would help the homeless. The Army Reserve Center opened in 1961 and ceased operation in 2012.
CASA is a nonprofit that provides affordable, permanent housing to individuals facing poverty and disability. Its model helps the homeless by providing housing to people at risk of becoming homeless. Tenants spend no more than thirty percent of their income on rent, and they employ individualized property management, working with their tenants individually to combat homelessness.
Coulter Jewell Thames, a site design company based in Durham, is working with CASA on planning the development, which is in its early stages.
“We are assisting them with due diligence and some land planning on the property in advance of determining an appropriate zoning and density for the site," president Dan Jewell said in an email to the City Council. The 5.5-acre property is currently zoned for residential use.
CASA envisions the property as “a long-time community asset,” and aims to work with future neighbors to ensure that the development will integrate with the community. But some neighbors expressed concern in early 2017 over the site being used for homeless services.
As INDY Week previously reported, there are some environmental concerns about the site. There was previously an incinerator on the site, and it has been listed as an hazardous materials site. According the GSA, asbestos and lead-based paint are present. The state has classified the facility as an inactive hazardous site in need of no further remedial action.
