Saving a Church in Asheville’s Oldest Black Neighbourhood by Turning It Into Affordable Homes

• The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County bought a former church in the East End/Valley Street neighbourhood.
• The society plans a three-unit, deeply affordable apartment building in the church.
• The congregation stopped using the building in 2013; developers had earlier bought it, worrying neighbours about demolition.
• Construction was expected to begin in 2025.

A former church in Asheville, North Carolina, is to become affordable housing rather than be lost to redevelopment. WLOS reported that the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County plans to convert it.

The church stands in the East End/Valley Street neighbourhood, described as Asheville’s oldest Black neighbourhood and one heavily affected by urban renewal. The congregation stopped using the building in 2013. Developers bought it first, prompting neighbours to worry that it would be demolished, and the Preservation Society then acquired it, about two years before the report.

The plan is a three-unit, deeply affordable apartment building. At the time of the report the project was in design and planning, with construction expected to begin in 2025. The cost was not given.

Executive director Jessie Landl said: “We believe that preservation’s an awesome tool for affordable housing. We have these structures that already exist that have gone out of use…” She stressed that the neighbourhood’s history makes the project especially important.

Small projects matter: three homes will not end a housing shortage, but they keep a historic church standing in a community that has already lost much of its built heritage. Jamaica’s historic districts also include churches that have fallen out of use. Heritage groups, community trusts and churches could work together to buy such buildings and turn them into a few homes, keeping them in the community. Grants for heritage and housing can sometimes be combined to make small projects viable. Groups should also check planning rules early, since a church building may need approval before it can be used as homes. Buyers in such cases should budget carefully, since converting an old church into even a few homes can be expensive and slow.

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