The Barry Farm development team is led by Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and A&R Companies. POAH and A&R are working with the residents, DC Housing Authority and the District to update the 2006 Revitalization Plan and development of the Choice Neighborhood Transformation Plan.
The DC Housing Authority and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development invited community stakeholders and residents to participate on the Barry Farm Choice Neighborhoods Steering Committee and three subcommittees including Housing, Neighborhood and People. To assist with the District’s and DCHA’s mission to revitalize Barry Farm, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the DC Housing Authority a Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grant for Barry Farm. The Choice Planning Grant will serve as a tool to help achieve the goals towards the Barry Farm redevelopment. Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants support the development of comprehensive neighborhood revitalization plans which focus on directing resources to address three core goals: Housing, People and Neighborhoods. For more information on HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods Program, click HERE.
The Choice Neighborhood Planning Grant for Barry Farm provides resources to support the revitalization plan. As the recipient of the Choice Planning Grant, DCHA is engaging residents and community stakeholders in a planning process that includes the creation of a Steering Committee and three sub-committees to address the People, Housing and Neighborhood. Residents and community stakeholders are encouraged to participate in the planning process. For more information on the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative or to get involved with a committee, please contact Janice Burgess, DCHA Deputy Director for Planning at jburgess@dchousing.org.
Sheridan Station Phase III, a HOPE VI project developed in partnership by the Housing Authority and WC Smith, broke ground on a 133 unit affordable housing development. The development will include 40 replacement units with a priority for Barry Farm households. To read the full press release, click HERE.
The DC Housing Authority Board of Commissioners voted to approve A&R Development and Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) as the master planning and development team to lead the Barry Farm redevelopment. The selection marks the completion of a competitive solicitation process initiated in the Fall of 2012 by the DC Housing Authority in partnership with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. The DC Housing Authority received a total of seven proposals that met the threshold requirements as outlined in the RFQ. The final selection process included substantive involvement from current residents of Barry Farm and Wade Apartments. In addition to numerous community meetings, representatives from the resident population were selected to be serve on the evaluation panel and participate in the selection process. The evaluation panel also included representatives from the DC Housing Authority and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development.
Later this fall and winter, the POAH/A&R team will begin a community engagement process for developing a long-term vision spelling out the goals, community elements, and amenities for the redevelopment of the Barry Farm community. Additionally, the POAH/A&R team, working in concert with the DC Housing Authority and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, will seek private financing of the community-based redevelopment plan. In 2014, the DC Housing Authority plans to compete for a HUD Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant to help fund the community-based redevelopment plan.
In September 2012, the DC Housing Authority and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development released a Request for Qualifications to solicit developers interested in leading the
redevelopment of the Barry Farm neighborhood. Seven teams submitted responses to the RFQ/RFP issued and were deemed qualified to move forward to submit redevelopment proposals for Barry Farm.