Kennedy Crossing and Victoria Place

At the height of the foreclosure crisis, when vacant and abandoned properties were destroying communities and struggling households had trouble accessing stable and affordable housing, the City of North Chicago donated nine parcels of land to a local nonprofit developer as part of a broader neighborhood stabilization effort. Developed by Lake County Residential Development Corporation (LCRDC) and its funded team partner Affordable Housing Corporation of Lake County (AHC), both of which have since merged into the Community Partners for Affordable Housing (CPAH), the Kennedy Crossing and Victoria Place development consists of three components: eight modularly constructed 1- and 2-story single-family homes; the construction of four new modular townhomes that serve as permanent supportive housing for veterans that are homeless or at risk of homelessness; and the rehabilitation of one six-unit apartment building and two foreclosed single-family homes into 8 quality rentals.

The single-family modular homes are constructed in a classic ranch-style, complementary to the surrounding neighborhood; each with 3 beds and 2.5 baths and an attached 2-car garage, ranging in size from 1,200 to 1,500 square feet of living space. The buyers were provided homebuyer counseling services through AHC and were eligible for $3,500 in down payment and closing cost assistance. Constructed off-site, each modular home was delivered and “set” on their lots with minimal disturbance to the surrounding community, taking a fraction of the time that home construction typically takes. The homes are located within walking distance of the local high school, middle school, elementary school, city hall, local bike paths, a public library, a large park, a forest preserve, and a commercial corridor.

The Victoria Place veteran townhomes, also modularly constructed and “set” on their lots, are a one-story, townhome-style building that offers four permanent supportive apartments to veterans either experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness and referred to LCRDC by the local VA. Spanning roughly five lots located in the middle of a residential block of primarily single-family homes, each apartment has a front porch that sits behind generous front lawns with pollinator gardens, blending beautifully into the existing neighborhood fabric. Each townhouse features fully equipped kitchens and generous living spaces, offering formerly homeless veterans the basic dignity of a clean, safe, and modern living space.

With a variety of funding sources and housing types, CPAH was able to work with North Chicago to create a range of sustainable housing solutions where vacant and abandoned properties were previously undermining neighborhood stability.

Despite several market barriers and unanticipated costs, such as higher-than-anticipated contractor bids which resulted in the decision to utilize modular housing, all objectives of the development were completed. The eight Kennedy Crossing single-family homes were all sold shortly after their construction, and the four veteran townhomes were all quickly filled with veterans at risk of homelessness who were provided VASH vouchers by the Veterans Affairs and support services from the Homeless Coalition of Lake County. Between the three sites, 20 affordable, high-quality housing options were created for low-income households in an area whose housing stock had been decimated by the effects of the foreclosure crisis.

When unanticipated material costs threatened the financial feasibility of this effort in the pre-development phase, a pivot by LCDC to modular construction not only allowed the work to continue but also demonstrated that manufactured homes can be high-quality in both their visual appeal and their durability, contributing to the vibrancy of the existing neighborhoods. Further flexibility was provided by the one-time funding opportunity created through the Office of the Attorney General’s National Foreclosure Settlement Grant, addressing a critical funding gap while allowing local partners to address local needs in a variety of ways.