Updated scheme for the project. Credit: Housing Authority of New Haven
HANH prez Shenae Draughn, Board Chair William Kilpatrick, and Commissioner Kevin Alvarez at Tuesday’s meeting. Credit: Dereen Shirnekhi photo
The city and the housing authority are teaming up to apply for a $26 million federal grant that would help fund the construction of 538 new mixed-income apartments as part of the first phase of redevelopment of the former Church Street South site across from Union Station.
The Housing Authority of New Haven’s (HANH) Board of Commissioners voted in favor of the submission of that application at its latest regular monthly meeting on Tuesday. Chair William Kilpatrick and Commissioners Kevin Alvarez, Danya Keene, and Elmer Rivera Bello were present. HANH President Shenae Draughn led the meeting, which was held at the housing authority’s headquarters at 358 Orange St.
The board voted unanimously in favor of HANH’s submission of an application for the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) FY2025 Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant to fund phase one of Union Square, a planned 2,490-unit mixed-income housing development at the site of the former Church Street South apartments and current 93-unit Robert T. Wolfe apartment building.
The housing authority bought the 8.27-acre, ex-Church Street South site in November 2023 for $21 million.
The Choice Neighborhoods Implementation grant would amount to up to $26 million. Phase one of the project would include the construction of approximately 538 new units facing Union Station, the demolition of Robert T. Wolfe, and the relocation of its tenants.
Displaced residents of the former privately owned, government-rent-subsidized 301-unit Church Street South complex — which was demolished in 2018 after years of neglected maintenance destroyed roofs and walls and poisoned kids with asthma — and Robert T. Wolfe residents will have the right to return to Union Square.
Forty percent of units will be affordable, according to HANH. Income qualifications for those units will range from below 50 percent of Area Median Income (AMI) to upwards of 80 percent.
The grant application deadline is March 9. Click here to read a 2016 article about a previous city attempt, under the Harp administration, to apply for this same federal grant to help rebuild the ex-Church Street South site.
“We know we need to find a better place for those residents,” said Ed LaChance, who is vice president of development for HANH’s development arm, the Glendower Group, about Robert T. Wolfe’s tenants on Tuesday. According to LaChance, the goal is for those tenants to be relocated to one of the newly constructed apartments, rather than off-site.
The housing authority received a $500,000 Choice Neighborhoods planning grant in the fall of 2023 for this same site. For the past two years, that grant has funded feasibility studies, the gathering of data and hosting of community charrettes, and the development of an architectural and neighborhood plan.
While HANH will be the primary applicant, the city will also be a co-applicant on the grant, if the Board of Alders approves a resolution authorizing the application. According to Ed LaChance, it is necessary for the city to be a co-applicant because it owns part of the property. The rest of the property is owned by the housing authority.
“They’re going to hand it to us eventually,” LaChance said of the city-owned portion.
During Tuesday’s meeting, the board unanimously approved resolutions designating Community Action Agency of New Haven (CAANH) as People Implementation Entity for the grant, and Glendower Group as Housing Implementation Entity. Both are necessary for the grant application process. CAANH will oversee resident services, education, workforce development, and health initiatives. Glendower will be responsible for development planning and phasing, as well as financing.
The board also approved two other resolutions related to the financing of the project. The first authorized a commitment for HANH to use Project-Based Vouchers (PBVs) to support around 600 of the total 2,490 units to be built at Union Square. For phase one, that will mean 93 PBVs representing the 93 Robert T. Wolfe units that will be replaced. According to LaChance, PBVs boost cash flow, allowing the HANH to qualify for higher bank loans.
The board then approved a resolution to submit a Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) application to HUD to convert Robert T. Wolfe to PBVs or Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA). According to HANH, the conversion supports the Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant application process and is necessary “to preserve the long-term physical and financial viability of the property, address severe capital needs, and facilitate comprehensive, phased redevelopment.”
LaChance estimated that it might take a year to begin construction of phase one, which is projected to take two years.
Union Square is just one major development in the works for that train station-adjacent stretch of Union Avenue. In June 2025, Gov. Ned Lamont announced plans for a $316 million transit-oriented development to be built atop the surface parking lot right next to Union Station. The project will include construction of two 16-story towers containing 470 apartments and 28,000 square feet of retail and commercial space. The first phase of construction is scheduled to begin in late 2026 and finish in early 2028.
Glendower development VP LaChance presents on application for $26M to fund 500+ new apartments. Credit: Dereen Shirnekhi photo
Townhouses and a pedestrian promenade slated to run along Church Street South (the street itself). Credit: Housing Authority of New Haven