The Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) is embarking on an exciting new partnership with CVS Health. The healthcare giant is investing $13.7 million over a three-year grant into CMHA’s Rosewind community to help renovate the property and provide community health programming.
While the 230-unit Rosewind is already in the process of a RAD conversion, CVS Health’s investment will help to fund and expand CMHA’s renovation of the property. Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing (OCCH) is the LIHTC creditor on the Rosewind project and OCCH was instrumental in bringing CVS Health to the table on the tax credit side.
Plans for CVS Health’s investment include enhancements to Rosewind’s community center and funding for an on-site community health worker and health services. The funds will improve the new community center kitchen, which will now allow for cooking demonstrations, and allow for new technology services (e.g. a computer lab, smartboards, and a business center). The investment will also contribute to a wide variety of health programs and services, including initiatives aimed at improving food access, maternal health, and racial equity.
“The redevelopment of Rosewind is part of CMHA’s $250 million investment in affordable housing in 2020,” said CMHA President and CEO Charles Hillman in apress release. “Stable housing provides a solid foundation, but people also need access to health care, employment, training and other services to reach their fullest potential. We’re excited to collaborate with CVS Health to provide new opportunities for our residents and revitalize the Linden community.”
“The best thing about this partnership is that we were ready,” said Sonja Nelson, CMHA’s AVP of Resident Initiatives on a call with CLPHA members. Because CMHA participated in CLPHA’s Aligning Health & Housing Systems initiative,“[the initiative] gave us the knowledge and confidence to pursue this partnership with CVS Health.” She added that the AHHS initiative helped CMHA to recognize the importance of health and housing and see where the opportunities were in their community. Also, thanks to data-sharing component of the initiative, CMHA was encouraged to look at their health data differently and to use this data to express their community’s needs to CVS Health.
Learn more about this exciting new partnership:
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9/16/20, Columbus Dispatch: CVS Health will invest $13.7 million to renovate Rosewind in South Linden
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9/16/20, WOSU Public Media (Columbus, OH): CVS Funds South Linden Apartment Renovations As Part Of Health Initiative
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9/16/20, Becker’s Hospital Review: CVS Health to invest $13.7M to renovate low-income housing in Ohio