Dear Friends,

As we reflect on 2023, we are filled with immense pride in the accomplishments and progress achieved by our collective efforts at Community Housing Partners. The year highlighted our commitment to empowering communities through innovative programs and services and realizing our vision of healthy, sustainable communities for everyone.

One of our most significant milestones in 2023 was the sale of the first home in the New River Home Trust. This groundbreaking initiative in Virginia’s New River Valley ensures that new for-sale homes remain affordable in perpetuity, opening doors to homeownership that may have otherwise remained closed. We are thrilled to have taken this crucial step toward addressing housing affordability in the region.

In addition, our Energy Solutions team has experienced significant growth, particularly in terms of staffing. With a substantial increase in capacity, we have expanded our impact and enhanced our ability to leverage new funding sources. This growth has enabled us to broaden our reach and deepen our commitment to creating healthier, more energy efficient living environments.

Our Property Management and Asset Management teams continue to demonstrate the highest standards of service, ensuring that our residents’ well-being and satisfaction remain at the forefront of our efforts. They contribute immeasurably to the quality of life within our communities, and we are appreciative for their collaboration. In 2023, we also embarked on a renovation project at S.A. Robinson, which holds a special place as CHP’s first real estate development decades ago. This initiative highlights our ongoing work to enhance the living experiences of our residents and create environments that support their overall well-being.

Our Resident Services department celebrated the fifth successful year of the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program and expanded this initiative to include our senior residents in 2023. Additionally, the Warm Wishes and Giving Tree campaigns further strengthened our connection with our communities and provided invaluable support to those in need. We’re also proud of the work of our Housing Stability team, which assists residents in maintaining stable housing through programs promoting financial stability and self-sufficiency.

The Real Estate Development team had a busy year, marked by new leadership and diligent work on several development projects. We commend their efforts to renovate several CHP apartment communities and complete construction on the Residences at North Hill. Their success in securing financing for additional developments in Alexandria, Virginia, and Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has also opened new doors of opportunity for CHP.

As we enter the final year of our 2022-2024 Strategic Plan, we have made considerable progress toward achieving our three-year organizational goals and objectives. We look forward to undertaking a strategic planning process in 2024 to shape our next phase of growth and impact.

This year’s Community Impact Report provides an overview of our recent achievements, including visualizations on how we are realizing our four Strategic Plan goals and stories and profiles that highlight the human impact of our work, from the first family to benefit from the New River Home Trust to the dedicated individuals championing equity and inclusion within our organization.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our partners, supporters, and the entire CHP community for your belief in our mission and vision. Together, we are creating a brighter future, one home and one community at a time.

Warmest regards,

A key component of Goal #1 is to optimize health and quality of life outcomes for our residents and clients. Through the weatherization program, our CHP Energy Solutions team is working to achieve this goal by creating more energy efficient homes for hundreds of Virginia residents, which helps to reduce costs and eliminate health and safety issues. With an average total job cost of more than $15,000 in 2023, Energy Solutions is investing in a better quality of life for clients and contributing to housing stability across our footprint.

Under Goal #2, our employee surveys from 2023 showcase why CHP is an employer of choice. The results from the Best Places to Work survey, along with our own employee engagement and Virginia Tech’s employee inclusion surveys, reveal a workplace culture where employees are supported, valued, and encouraged to grow. The majority of CHP’s employees participated in the surveys. These charts demonstrate that our staff members feel equipped to do their jobs, invest in their development, and believe they are valued by their supervisors.

CHP’s dedication to sustainability is reflected in this chart showing our energy usage at S.A. Robinson Apartments in Pembroke, Virginia, in kilowatt-hours from 2019 to 2023. This visualization highlights our operational practices that aim to reduce environmental impact, a key part of Goal #3. Through targeted decarbonization activities and resident education programs, we are taking steps to reduce carbon emissions and foster energy-efficient practices across our organization.

The chart showcasing the financial strength index and mission strength index of our properties demonstrates CHP’s adherence to investment strategies that prioritize resilience, impact, stewardship, and equity (RISE). Each of our properties is plotted on the visualization below to show where it falls on our financial/mission matrix. This tool, developed by our Business Intelligence team and updated for 2023, allows us to make informed decisions on where to invest our resources to maximize impact and support communities and individuals facing social, environmental, and economic injustices, a key objective under Goal #4. By continuously monitoring these metrics, CHP ensures that our investments align with our core values and create meaningful change in the areas we serve.

At the conclusion of its fifth year, the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program, initiated by Community Housing Partners (CHP), has once again proven to be successful in supporting and encouraging young readers residing in CHP communities. This year alone, the initiative distributed over 4,000 free books and engaged over 450 enthusiastic young readers. To promote the joy of reading across all age groups, CHP also expanded the program to include grandparents and seniors.

Since its inception in 2019, the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program has been instrumental in fostering language development, cultural awareness, and a passion for reading among children and youth. By providing free books, snacks, and activities, the program empowers young participants, stimulates their curiosity, and nurtures their imagination, positively impacting their academic and personal growth.

Tiffany Slusher, Director of Programs for CHP Resident Services, expressed her delight at the program’s continued success. “We started the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program hoping that the program would combat summer learning loss for a few kids at a few properties,” she said. “Over the past five years, the program has grown more than we could have expected, and we are thrilled to see the program evolve to include seniors and grandparents. We are grateful for the community involvement in this program and eager to see what lies ahead for CHP Reads!”

In 2023, CHP brought two initiatives to senior and special needs residents in Virginia and Maryland to brighten their holiday season and create a sense of warmth and community during the chilly months. The Warm Wishes program continued to provide essential items and gifts to CHP’s Virginia residents, while the newly established Giving Tree Project offered gift bags displayed on a holiday tree for CHP’s Maryland residents.

The residents who benefited from these programs had nothing but kind words to say. “I truly appreciate the thoughtfulness and genuine good wishes,” said a resident at Greenstone on 5th Apartments in Charlottesville, Virginia, who received a cooking pan with lid. “It’s been so hard, and this will just bring me and the food I cook more joy.”

Another Charlottesville resident at Ephphatha Village Apartments received a $30 grocery store gift card. “You remembered me!” he said. “This [choking up] is a bigger gift that you can know!”

Diane McElveen, Resident Services Coordinator at J. Van Story Branch Apartments in Baltimore, administered the Giving Tree Program. “The greatest thing for J. Van Story was the true resident participation,” she said. “It was truly a community giving event! And the residents really loved the items they received.”