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Housing & Community
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Affordable Housing Program Success Stories
From brownfield to bustle, Northeast Wilmington is on the march
Marc Tucker, a 41-year old single parent of four, knows all about closing a sale.
Tucker, a call center manager, moved his family into Speakman Place in Northeast Wilmington, Delaware the first weekend last November, and he’s convinced the deal was a good one. “I was looking for a single-family home that was affordable,” Tucker says. “It’s quiet and a relatively safe environment, with Speakman Park just across the street. It was the perfect opportunity for us to take advantage of.”
Speakman Place, a mixed-income development featuring both subsidized and market-rate homes, is the latest calling card in the new, revived Northeast section of Wilmington. Built on the site of a plumbing fixtures factory that had been there for 96 years, Speakman Place offers three-bedroom, 1,600-square-foot townhomes ranging in price from $110,000 to $240,000. Only units priced at $192,900 and up are still available. The project is supported with financing from the Delaware State Housing Authority, the City of Wilmington, a $500,000 Affordable Housing Program grant from FHLBank Pittsburgh and financing from FHLBank member Citicorp Trust Bank.
The attractive new neighborhood follows other revitalization projects in the area that include the Village of Eastlake and West Side Health’s new community center. The 71-unit Speakman Place will serve as a magnet for even more development, Mayor James Baker believes, rounding out the economic growth that has already occurred downtown and along the waterfront.
Paul Calistro Jr., president of Cornerstone West Community Development Corporation, the project sponsor, thinks the civic pride being exhibited by the first owners at Speakman Place bodes well.
“Every community has its own identity with values and principles,” says Calistro, who also serves on FHLBank’s Affordable Housing Advisory Council. “These folks have already said they don’t want loud music, double parking and people who don’t cut the lawn - and they’re writing bylaws to make sure that’s the way it is.”
The $15.5 million Speakman Place should be fully constructed by summer 2008. For more details on this attractive new neighborhood, click here.
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