Amazon has announced a commitment of $55 million commitment to the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) to develop more than 500 new affordable homes in Tysons, Virginia, and another $10.6 million for similar efforts in Nashville.

Made through the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, the commitments include the construction of homes in Fairfax County, northwest of Arlington, where Amazon’s second headquarters is located. The homes are for families making 60 percent, 50 percent, and 30 percent of the area median income, and the development will contain a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments. The new units are part of the Dominion Square West development project. Construction will begin in 2023, and once complete, the Dominion Square apartment community will be the largest affordable residential development in Tysons. 

Also made through the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, the commitments in Nashville include $7.1 million to the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) and $3.5 million to the nonprofit CrossBridge. The investment in MDHA will support construction of Cherry Oak Apartments, a mixed-income residential development featuring 96 apartments, including 53 affordable units in the Cayce Place neighborhood in East Nashville for families earning below 80 percent of the area medium income. The grant to CrossBridge will support its projects in the Rolling Hill Mill neighborhood, where the organization is completing a new 50-unit building and renovating an existing 24-unit building into a 34-unit building. It also will enable CrossBridge to expand its supportive services to adults overcoming addiction, including mental health counseling, addiction support, and workforce reentry support to tenants. The 84 CrossBridge units this funding supports will add to the stock of permanent supportive housing that is most difficult to finance.

“We’re incredibly excited about the economic vibrancy that Amazon’s HQ2 will bring to Virginia, and we also recognize that affordable housing is key to unlock opportunity for everyone,” said Alice Shobe, global director of the Amazon in the Community program. “This is a unique project to create long-term affordable housing near high-quality transit and jobs, and offer new resources for the community that will enrich the lives of residents and help families thrive.” 

(Photo Credit: Getty Images/sommart)