Bay Aging recently broke ground on a new income-restricted senior apartment building in Gloucester County. The new 40-unit apartment complex will provide needed affordable housing for seniors in Gloucester County and complement the ten existing Bay Aging senior rental housing communities across the region. “This effort has been years in the making,” said Joshua Gemerek, Senior Vice President of Bay Aging’s Housing Division. “Obviously, we would have liked to have held a big groundbreaking ceremony, but COVID-19 concerns kept us from doing so. Nevertheless, we are very excited to add to the affordable housing stock in the area.”
Daffodil Gardens Phase II is being constructed adjacent to the original Daffodil Gardens; a 64-unit rental housing community built in Gloucester County in 2001. The human service campus also includes Bay Aging’s Gloucester Adult Day Care Center and a Bay Transit facility, which provides residents with easy access to an array of services. Residents are only minutes away from Riverside Walter Reed Hospital, a Food Lion grocery store, pharmacy and other professional services and shops.
Parker General Contractors, which has completed several affordable housing projects for Bay Aging, is overseeing the construction of Daffodil Gardens Phase II. dBF Associates are the projects architects and Bay Design Group are providing civil engineering services. The facility will meet both universal design and sustainability standards. Daffodil Gardens Phase II will fill an important gap in the local Gloucester community. Daffodil Gardens, the existing apartment complex, remains at full capacity, highlighting the continuing need for affordable senior housing across the region. The new apartments will help residents live in a setting where they can easily access related services and support the community’s long-term vitality. Half of the units will serve residents with incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), while the other half will be reserved for residents whose incomes are at or below 50 percent AMI. “Daffodil Gardens II will help address a serious shortage of affordable housing for older residents not just in Gloucester County but across the entire region,” said Kathy Vesley, President and CEO of Bay Aging. “We appreciate the tremendous support we received from a myriad of partners including Virginia Housing, Virginia Community Capital, Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta, Virginia Community Development Corporation, Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project, the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, and the Gloucester Economic Development Authority who all helped to make Daffodil Gardens II a reality,” she added.
