Boston, MA (January 16, 2019) Atlantic Apartment Homes, a low-income community in Washington, D.C., has won a Communities of Quality® (COQ) Award from the National Affordable Housing Management Association (NAHMA).

The 2018 NAHMA award recognized WinnCompanies for executing an “Outstanding Turnaround of a Troubled Property” at the 303-unit site, which is home to 770 people. WinnDevelopment recently completed a two-year, $69 million acquisition and rehabilitation effort led by WinnDevelopment Senior Vice President Brett Meringoff, operating partner of the mid-Atlantic region. The redevelopment project completely modernized all apartment homes, amenities, and common areas including a state of the art security camera system; introduced new and enhanced social services for residents; and, installed the District’s largest community solar project on the rooftops of several apartment buildings.

“This is a prime example of what we do and how we can profoundly impact the lives of our residents,” said WinnDevelopment Senior Vice President Brett Meringoff, operating partner of the mid-Atlantic region. “These properties were last rehabilitated in the 1980s and are located in Ward 8 of Washington DC where there is a tremendous need for high quality affordable housing. The physical needs and on-site operations posed a great opportunity for improvement in terms of maintenance and energy efficiency."" “We are thrilled to receive this prestigious award on behalf of WinnCompanies, as well as our capital partners – the DC Department of Housing and Community Development, the DC Housing Finance Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, Citi Community Capital and Boston Financial Investment Management. Without their involvement, this national example of a preservation and turn-around project would not have been possible.”

Brett Meringoff, Senior Vice President of WinnDevelopment

NAHMA is the leading voice for affordable housing management, advocating on behalf of multifamily property managers and owners whose mission is to provide quality affordable housing. Since 1992, the organization’s COQ awards have honored the best multifamily affordable housing communities across the country. Entrants are judged on how they manage the physical, financial and social conditions of their properties, and on how well they convey their success in offering the highest quality of life for their residents.

“There is no other award that focuses so comprehensively on the everyday life and management expertise of affordable housing properties,” said NAHMA Executive Director Kris Cook, CAE. “It is quite an accomplishment to be named a Community of Quality Award winner. The competitive process has outstanding properties vying head-to-head against one another, and our independent panel of judges carefully analyzes the entries to select the ones that really stand out.”

Resident services at the site, delivered by extensively trained staff and community partners, include:

• A Community Impact Center that provides financial coaching to individuals and families, access to credit building opportunities, volunteer income tax assistance, and benefits assessments and enrollments to the individuals, families and seniors of the community;
• A partnership with the Far Southeast Family Strengthening Collaborative and United Planning Organization to create an on-site center that connects residents to sustainable living wage jobs and financial health;
• Affordable early education, after-school and adult education programs delivered in partnership with the United Planning Organization, Hendley Elementary School, Jewel’s New Beginnings, City Gate and the Washington Nationals baseball team;
• Neighborhood partnerships with Congress Heights Arts and Cultural Center, the TraRon Center and many more that have empowered the community to play a vital role in advocacy, peer counseling and collective dialogue to take on issues from public safety to civic arts; and,
• A partnership with Children’s Hospital, the Capital Area Food Bank, DC Kitchen, D.C.’s Ward 8 Police Department and others that has helped connect hundreds of residents to health care, health screenings, affordable food and mental health care.

“Our focus on collaboration and innovation has been met with a group of amazing partners who are devoted to the success of the Atlantic Apartment Homes community,” said Trevor Samios, Vice President of Connected Communities at WinnCompanies. “Together, we have concentrated our efforts on creating better outcomes in education, health, and economic mobility alongside residents and the community shows us again and again the power of this investment.”

The physical rehabilitation of the site generated 648 construction jobs and more than 80 percent of those hired were minorities; 9 percent were women; 23 percent were District residents and 84 percent were residents of the DC metropolitan area. Many of the firms contracted to work on the project were DC certified Small Business Enterprises.

Before the rehabilitation effort, the apartments at the site used approximately 30 percent more energy than a typical, code-compliant home. They are now are expected to use 15 percent less energy than a code-compliant home, which means residents will see their energy costs cut nearly in half.

In addition, the 651-kilowatt community renewable energy facility installed on the rooftops of several buildings is the largest system of its kind in D.C. The renewable energy produced by the solar-panel system will directly benefit eligible low-income residents of the nation’s capital for free. It is expected to reduce nearly 160 households’ utility bills by $500 per year at no cost to the recipient.

Atlantic Apartment Homes is a Section 8 multifamily community, formerly known as two separate communities: Atlantic Gardens and Atlantic Terrace. Atlantic Gardens, built in 1948, features 105 apartments within five three-story garden-style buildings. Atlantic Terrace, built in 1964, is comprised of 195 units in six three- to four-story garden-style buildings.

WinnCompanies purchased the properties in 1982.

Atlantic Apartment Homes, prior to renovation	Atlantic Apartment Homes, after renovation