COLUMBIA, SC (WACH) — Homeless No More broke ground Tuesday on Grand Village, a $12.8 million affordable housing development at the former Grand Motel site.
The project will include 30 homes and a community center for families.
Grand Village is part of Homeless No More’s Live Oak initiative, which develops affordable housing for families with children. The nonprofit acquired the former motel property in 2023.
The development will include 20 newly constructed apartments with two or three bedrooms.
Another 10 units will be created through the rehabilitation of existing motel structures. Those units will include studios and two-bedroom apartments, according to project information provided by Homeless No More.
The project is expected to be completed in spring 2028. Gavin Design Group of Columbia is the architect, and Progress Carolina of Myrtle Beach is the general contractor.
The development also will include the James E. Christopher Community Center. It is named for a longtime Homeless No More board member and advocate for vulnerable families.
The center is expected to offer children’s mentoring programs, financial literacy classes and community gatherings.
“Every family deserves a place to live, a neighbor to know, and a community to be part of. Grand Village makes that possible,” Homeless No More President and CEO Lila Anna Sauls said in a news release.
“This project has been almost three years in the making, and none of it would have been possible without the dedication and generosity of our incredible partners,” Sauls said.
The project is backed by the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority, United Way of the Midlands, Richland County, SC Community Loan Fund, Dominion Energy, First Citizens Bank and the Central Carolina Community Foundation.
United Way of the Midlands President and CEO Sara Fawcett said the Midlands faces an estimated shortage of 50,000 attainable housing units.
“Addressing that need will take all of us,” Fawcett said.
Dominion Energy President Keller Kissam said the project would help transform the former motel property into affordable housing.
“Meaningful second chances provide the opportunity to change lives,” Kissam said.