Charleston Mayor William Cogswell has proposed a partnership between the city, its housing authority and an Atlanta developer to build new mixed-income housing on the city’s Eastside. The proposal comes four months after he asked the authority to cancel a contract with the same developer.
The Charleston Housing Authority (CHA) commissioners in April 2024 unanimously selected The Integral Group, an Atlanta-based urban development company, to redevelop Cooper River Courts and a portion of the neighboring Meeting Street Manor.
The new $5.5 million development, to be called Morrison Station, was to have a swimming pool, exercise room, a grocery store to solve the community’s “food desert” dilemma, and possibly a revived branch of the historic Charleston YMCA for recreation programs, the company has said. It is seen as a welcomed step to eventually phasing out aged public housing that is plagued with maintenance issues.
But in a January letter to the CHA, the mayor asked the commissioners to “rebid” the project under different terms and conditions.
After talks between the city and Integral, Cogswell made a surprising reversal on May 18. During brief remarks to the CHA commissioners, the mayor proposed that the city and Integral return to the CHA on June 22 with “a framework for a proposal for a three-way partnership.”
The partnership, Cogswell said, would be similar under the current contract that the authority has with Integral but “expanded to some city properties so we can ensure the build-first program. It will be a different deal than what you all have now … with a different financial structure … but Integral and the city will be coming to you jointly.”
The mayor said he could not offer specifics “because we are still in conversation, but we have had a very productive initial meeting … that gives me a lot of confidence that we can work something out that will be a win-win for all parties.”
City spokesperson Deja Knight McMillan said the mayor “did not agree with that contract. Now both parties have come together to work on a new deal.”
After the meeting, CHA board chairman Gregory Voigt said the mayor’s proposal made “sense for everybody to sit at the table and talk to each other. I am heartened when I see cooperation (among) people who are trying to get to a place where they can do something in the public good.”
CHA leadership transition
Talks between the city and Integral came at an inconvenient time for the CHA, which was in the midst of a leadership change. Future discussions on the possible partnership will now include the CHA’s newly hired CEO, Nathan Simms, who attended his first board meeting Monday under less than auspicious circumstances.
He reported to work May 4. Simms previously led the Norfolk, Va., housing authority but allegations against him may have led to his termination.
A Virginia news outlet reported in two stories on April 28 and May 6 that Simms directed at least $4.3 million in no-bid contracts toward former associates without the Norfolk board’s knowledge. He was reportedly terminated in November by a 6-3 vote. Sources have questioned the outlet’s reporting.
Voigt has told the Charleston City Paper that board members were satisfied with Simms’ answers to why he was terminated. Voigt also said the board was launching a third-party investigation into the reason for Simms’ termination.
In a recent interview with the City Paper, Simms said he welcomes the investigation which will give him “an opportunity to clear my name.”
On May 26, Simms is scheduled to hold his first meeting with public housing tenants citywide to share his vision of how “I will move this agency forward and how that impacts them and how they can be involved in that.”
Simms said he wants to meet with each housing community “individually to get folks engaged to create a dialogue” to build trust between them and the authority. Part of that connection with residents, he added, is also guiding tenants to resources to lead them to eventual homeowners.
Partnership meeting
No date has been set for a meeting between the city, the CHA staff and the company to prepare for the June commisioners’ meeting with Cogswell. In his presentation to the CHA board, Cogswell did not say why he changed his mind about the contract between the authority and Integral. But in a prepared statement, the mayor said, his vision for his proposed Project 3500 to build hundreds of affordable housing units in Charleston is in step with Integral’s mission to build affordable housing nationwide.
“Tonight was an important step forward for the hundreds of families on the eastern peninsula who deserve better and have waited long enough,” Cogswell said in a written statement. “After a period of frank and sometimes difficult discussions, I am genuinely encouraged by where we have landed. Integral has a 30-year track record of building communities where people at every income level live together with dignity. That is exactly the vision at the heart of Project 3500, and I believe we have the right partner to help us deliver it.”
Richard White, Integral’s senior vice president, said, “the conversations have centered on resident outcomes, long-term redevelopment considerations, and how large-scale mixed-income redevelopment efforts are best carried out thoughtfully and responsibly over time. There is still substantial work ahead. Our focus continues to be helping support a constructive long-term approach that keeps residents and the broader community at the center of the process.”
Newly elected Charleston City Council Member Aaron Polkey, whose district includes the Eastside housing communities, declined to comment.
Talks between the city and Integral is good news for the Coastal Community Foundation, which has pledged to invest $1 million in the project. Darrin Goss Sr., the foundation’s CEO and president said, “I am ecstatic about this announcement, and the opportunity it presents to the residents of the Eastside.”
Help keep the City Paper free.
No paywalls.
No subscription cost.
Free delivery at 800 locations.
Help support independent journalism by donating today.