Building escape from violence

A SAFER PLACE: A floor plan for an apartment in Smith Hill Community Development Corporation and Sojourner House’s joint project aimed at people fleeing domestic violence. / COURTESY SMITH HILL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORP.
A SAFER PLACE: A floor plan for an apartment in Smith Hill Community Development Corporation and Sojourner House’s joint project aimed at people fleeing domestic violence. / COURTESY SMITH HILL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORP.

A multifamily building now undergoing renovation in the Smith Hill neighborhood of Providence will soon be more than housing for a few families: It will be a refuge for those seeking escape from violence and abuse.
Two nonprofit organizations, the Smith Hill Community Development Corporation and Sojourner House, have teamed up to transform a now-vacant building into three apartments for families and singles. The project is described as the state’s first supportive housing project for those fleeing domestic violence.
If it proves successful, similar projects could soon appear elsewhere. “This building is a pilot,” said Jean Lamb, the CDC’s acting executive director. “We’re confident we’ll continue to develop more housing like this on Smith Hill and in Wanskuck, our neighboring community.”
She also predicts the project could be copied by other housing groups. “We don’t want to be the only ones,” she said. “Victims can’t always live in Providence.”
The most important feature of the building is the location. To ensure residents are protected from abusive partners they’ve left, the Smith Hill CDC is not disclosing the exact address. Lamb says, however, that it will be a short walk from Sojourner House, a social service agency that will provide what she calls “supportive services.”
That could include counseling, help getting financial assistance, and job training. “The goal of supportive services is that eventually they will have independent lives,” Lamb said. “We hope they’ll be finding jobs or going back to school.”
Beyond that, the main construction challenge is meeting the housing standards set by community-development corporations, organizations that use government funds to create low-cost homes and business properties. That means buildings must be affordable, attractive, energy-efficient and handicapped accessible whenever possible.
Whenever they’re renovating a home or apartment building, the Smith Hill CDC strives to meet green-building standards. All lead paint is removed from the walls. New paint is low in volatile organic compounds. If recycled construction materials are available, builders use them. Houses are also equipped with low-flow toilets, sinks and showers. Insulated windows improve heat conservation. The Smith Hill CDC also strives to make housing handicapped accessible, especially with first-floor units. “This particular house can’t be fully accessible, but we’ll be doing our best to use universal design,” Lamb said. “The square footage doesn’t allow us to include larger door frames or expand bathrooms.”
The privacy of the location is another concern. At a recent groundbreaking ceremony, a member of the advocacy group Sisters Overcoming Abusive Relationships told how those fleeing domestic violence are very often stalked by their former partners, and sometimes have to move several times to rebuild their lives.
It’s unknown if there will be additional security features, as Smith Hill CDC is not disclosing that information. Lamb says only that “the security of our residents is always paramount, whether or not they’ve been victims of domestic abuse.”
While domestic violence can take place in any city or neighborhood, don’t expect to see supportive housing popping up in more affluent communities. That’s because a secondary goal of community-development corporations is to transform vacant, derelict properties into something attractive and remove blight from cities.
“When we’re looking for something that needs redevelopment, we usually acquire a building that’s been boarded up, or one that’s empty because of foreclosure,” Lamb said. “One purpose of renovation is to improve the landscape of the neighborhood. Usually we do what is called a ‘gut rehab.’ We do all the work that’s necessary to meet the city’s code. And we try to retain architectural details, both inside and outside.” When renovation is completed, the building will feature three apartment units: an upstairs unit for a single person, and two two-bedroom apartments. Construction is expected to begin soon, and the apartments could be available for tenants by late spring or early summer.
The project will cost approximately $400,000. “The average cost of acquiring a site and doing renovations is somewhere between $350,000 and $425,000,” Lamb said. “It really depends on the size of the house and the amount of renovation required. When we do a renovation, we’re not just slapping some paint down. We consider the maintenance requirements for the next 40 years or so.”
Rhode Island Housing is providing $235,000 to pay for construction, and the Building Homes Rhode Island Fund will pay $150,000. Both are state agencies. More money will come from the United Way of Rhode Island.
The Smith Hill home will be open to anyone from Rhode Island, not just those from the Providence neighborhood. What’s more, it is not for women and children only.
“They could be women, or women and their children, but they could be men as well,” Lamb said. “Anyone who’s been a victim of domestic abuse could be a resident.”
Sojourner House is not the only agency in the neighborhood offering social services, Lamb notes. The Smith Hill CDC has a community room near its main office at Cap Square that offers programs for children and young adults.
And Providence College leases space for a community center called the PC/Smith Hill Annex, staffed by a VISTA worker.
The community center also includes a cafe, Common Ground, run by students and people living in the area. Besides being a place to eat, the cafe provides job-training opportunities.
“Providence College has been a partner of ours for many years,” Lamb said. “They offer everything from monthly meals to dance classes to college courses. They’re open free to residents of our houses and everyone else in the community.” •

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