When Carla DeStefano first heard of plans to transform a battered office building in Jamestown into affordable housing designed for those with physical and intellectual disabilities, she didn’t think it could be done.
DeStefano, executive director of the community development nonprofit Stop Wasting Abandoned Properties Inc., thought of the hassles of complying with the town’s zoning laws, the financing hurdles and the potential opposition from neighbors in the rural island community, among other things.
“My first thought was, ‘This is never going to happen,’ ” DeStefano said.
She was wrong.
DeStefano attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony in June for the housing development known as 2 Hammett Court, located a short distance from Jamestown’s village center, a 12-unit affordable housing project designed specifically for those with intellectual and physical disabilities.
The $5.3 million development is the result of a partnership between DeStefano’s group – known better as SWAP – and Looking Upwards Inc., a Middletown-based nonprofit providing residential, vocational and educational services to those with developmental disabilities.
It turns out DeStefano didn’t need to fret much about the potential obstacles. Major opposition never materialized and local officials were supportive of the project.
Meanwhile, the R.I. Housing and Mortgage Finance Corp. awarded Looking Upwards and SWAP $1.8 million from the Building Homes RI program to get it constructed. Another $3.5 million came from the Rhode Island Rebounds Production Fund, which was created as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
This kind of housing that is both affordable and accessible is a unique concept, officials say.
In Rhode Island, state data shows just 31.8% of low-income adults with disabilities are getting housing assistance.
Rent for all of the development’s 12 units will be income-restricted, available only to people who earn less than 80% of the area median income. And each is designed with the flexibility to accommodate residents’ physical, intellectual and developmental disabilities. Only six of the 12 units are reserved for those with intellectual and physical disabilities.
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THE RIGHT FIT: The countertops and kitchen sinks in the 2 Hammett Court apartments are designed to accommodate residents in wheelchairs.
PBN PHOTO/KATIE CASTELLANI[/caption]
The building – once a nondescript, two-story office building with an attached industrial space – has undergone quite a transformation since 2 Hammett Court broke ground in January 2024.
Two of the apartments are designed to be fully accessible for those with disabilities, while the remaining units are designed to be easily adaptable to meet accessibility needs.
Not only are the doors wider to easily accommodate wheelchairs but apartment front doors feature lowered spyholes for those seated in a wheelchair.
Within the apartment, there are pocket doors that slide into the wall instead of swinging doors, which can be more difficult for those with disabilities to manage.
In the kitchen, knobs on the stove are lowered, and there is extra space under the sink where storage space is more reachable.
Apartments on the first floor come with an in-unit washer and dryer. Those living on the second floor share a laundry room located in the basement. There is also a community space in the basement, which has been left empty so the residents can decide how it’s designed.
From the outside, the building is almost unrecognizable from the small, dilapidated office space.
To complete the project, the entire building had to be elevated to increase the ceiling height in the basement, and a wheelchair ramp was installed at the main entrance.
The apartment building is located close to the town’s commercial corridor of stores on Narragansett Avenue and public transit.
Just across the street is 3 Hammett Court, another residential building constructed a few year ago to accommodate people with disabilities but without the income-restricted component. Both projects are owned and managed by Looking Upwards, a nonprofit agency offering services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as kids with diverse needs.
“We wanted 2 Hammett Court to be beautiful, affordable and accessible. We envisioned apartments where Rhode Islanders with low to moderate incomes, including individuals with disabilities, could enjoy the quality of life that comes from being at ease in your home – and having ready access to local businesses, employers and recreational opportunities,” said Carrie Miranda, executive director of Looking Upwards. “We are so pleased that vision is now a reality.”
Like most Rhode Island municipalities, Jamestown, a largely well-to-do island community of about 5,500, has failed to meet the state’s three-decade-old mandate that each city and town have at least 10% of its housing stock deemed affordable. Jamestown’s percentage is less than 5%.
That’s part of the reason why the project has the backing of state and federal officials.
“This Looking Upwards apartment complex is evidence of the power of partnership between experienced developers and service providers,” said R.I. Housing Secretary Deborah J. Goddard. “The [R.I.] Department of Housing is proud that the state was able to dedicate resources to this project and looks forward to supporting more such efforts as it moves our Housing 2030 plan forward.”
While DeStefano was skeptical about the ability to complete 2 Hammett Court, SWAP is already using the same model for a project that’s about to break ground in Providence. The development, located on Westminster Street, will have 41 affordable housing units, with up to nine of them available for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“Our goal early on was to build this building, and then hopefully it would become a pilot program to be replicable by others,” DeStefano said of 2 Hammett Court. “What’s a pilot program? It’s a recipe you use over and over and over again.”
