The fate of 167 senior residents currently living in the Ladrey Senior High-Rise is uncertain, as they, along with a police officer stationed there, must vacate the building by the end of the year.
Erik C. Johnson, CEO of the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority (ARHA), believes that this situation presents a unique opportunity to enhance support for seniors in the city.
Johnson expressed his views in an interview with ALXnow, stating, “This comes down to whether or not the city is going to support seniors the way that we want to support seniors.
We’re not asking the city to finance it, nor is the city taking a first position loss in the event that something goes wrong.”
The Alexandria City Council is set to review the proposal during its meeting tonight, with further discussion scheduled for the next ARHA Board meeting on June 23.
In January 2024, the City Council approved plans to demolish the existing 11-story, 170-unit affordable apartment building located at 300 Wythe Street.
This structure has served as a residence for seniors and individuals with disabilities, while also housing ARHA’s former headquarters at 600 N. Fairfax Street.
The anticipated replacement development will involve a new L-shaped building with 270 units, reaching heights of six to seven stories.
Due to a significant $40 million funding gap, Johnson and the ARHA Board have concluded that the current project for Ladrey Senior High-Rise is not feasible.
Reflecting on the challenges of the situation, Johnson stated, “When the project was conceived, the world was different.
Credit pricing was different.
Construction pricing was different.
Interest rates were lower.
There were different types of soft money in the environment that you could deal with.
All those things changed from 2020 to 2025, which meant that the concept that worked five years ago, it just didn’t work.”
Compounding these challenges, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has terminated operating support for the management and maintenance of the Ladrey building.
As a result, ARHA is moving forward with plans to relocate residents from the 1970s-era building by Thanksgiving.
In a strategic move, ARHA has approached the city for support to back loans for the acquisition of Alate Old Town, a newly constructed senior housing facility located at 1122 First Street in the Braddock neighborhood.
According to a staff memo, the developer behind The Alate has expressed a desire to exit the project and has agreed to sell it for $56.8 million.
City records indicate that the property was assessed at $53.1 million earlier this year.
ARHA plans to utilize $6 million from its savings to invest in the First Street property, which will be renamed Silver Fox, and has applied for bond funding from the Virginia Resources Authority.
“It’s serendipity, right?” Johnson remarked regarding this transition.
Residents transitioning from the Ladrey will benefit, as their average rent is currently $369, and that rate will remain unchanged.
They will be moving into a brand-new Class A building just seven blocks away, completed less than two years ago.
Looking ahead, Johnson aims to kick-off a full renovation of the Ladrey High-Rise in the first quarter of 2027, with hopes of completing it by 2029.
This plan would ultimately allow ARHA to manage multiple affordable senior housing apartment buildings.
The renovations and associated financial strategies indicate ARHA’s commitment to repositioning the property effectively and mitigating the city’s risks.
Johnson explained that ARHA will provide a check of approximately $6 million, in addition to allocating $3.4 million to a debt service reserve fund, covering the first year’s interest and principal payments.
Furthermore, ARHA plans to contribute $9 million in collateral through real estate assets or a line of credit to further backstop the city’s investment in the project.
Johnson reiterated, “ARHA has $18.4 million in committed capital to mitigate the city’s risk.
We could still rent it out differently or sell the asset.
The city’s moral obligation only comes into play if there’s a complete failure of either our ability to reposition the asset, to sell it to somebody else and exhaust all the equity and guarantees that have been put in place.”
image source from：https://www.alxnow.com/2025/06/10/ceo-of-arha-says-deal-to-buy-senior-apartment-building-in-braddock-neighborhood-is-serendipity/
