Housing Families First has expanded its eastern Henrico facilities with a new wing that adds meeting and volunteer spaces. (Jack Jacobs photo)
When it first opened in 2000, Housing Families First was strictly a shelter for homeless people.
And now, two decades and additional housing programs later, the nonprofit has upgraded its facilities to support and grow those expanded services.
HFF has largely wrapped up a nearly $3 million expansion and renovation project that added a new wing and new amenities to its facilities at 3900 Nine Mile Road in eastern Henrico County.
The group has seen its client base increase over the years, and the project was deemed necessary to provide additional administrative and meeting spaces in addition to other improvements, Executive Director Beth Vann-Turnbull said in an interview after a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week.
“We haven’t done any significant renovations or expansions since 2000. At that time, we worked with maybe 15 to 20 families a year, maybe about 45 people. And last year, between all our programs, we worked with nearly 700 people,” Vann-Turnbull said.
Beth Vann-Turnbull
The project added a new 2,800-square-foot office wing that features two flex-space offices and a volunteer space, and brings the nonprofit’s facilities to a total of 17,500 square feet. Also included in the project was a new multi-purpose room, a new basketball court and expanded parking.
“As we added programs based on need over the years, we didn’t have the space to support them,” Vann-Turnbull said.
The group’s Hilliard House onsite short-term emergency shelter was also renovated and expanded. The nonprofit added 10 more beds to its shelter, which is now up to 40. It also added another private room for a total of 11 such rooms in the shelter.
Vann-Turnbull said the project is largely completed except for punch-list items. Canterbury Enterprises was the general contractor and Arnold Design Studio provided architectural design services. Henrico County leases the property to Housing Families First.
The capital project was fueled by the nonprofit’s recent Opening Doors for Families fundraising campaign, which raised $4.7 million.
“Opening Doors for Families exceeded expectations and enabled the expansion of the organization’s campus here in Henrico County,” Board President Harvey Chambers said during his remarks at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “The expanded campus builds on Housing Families First’s 20-plus years of success, and it will ensure the organization can serve more families with children in the Richmond region.”
Housing Families First Board of Directors President Harvey Chambers shared remarks during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the nonprofit’s expansion and renovation project. (Photo courtesy Gianna Stanley/Housing Families First)
Chambers said the campaign exceeded its original funding goal by more than 6 percent and was completed five months earlier than planned. In addition to the campus improvements, the campaign supports the nonprofit’s Bringing Families Home program, as well as provides reserve funds.
In 2020, the organization introduced Bringing Families Home, which helps students who attend Richmond, Henrico and Chesterfield public schools and live in motels or crowded homes move into permanent housing.
That program followed the 2012 addition of a rapid rehousing program called Building Neighbors, which provides assistance in finding and affording rental homes.
Housing Families First was founded as Hilliard House in 2000, though it changed its name in 2014. The original moniker lives on as the name for its shelter, which opened in 2001.
Vann-Turnbull, Operations Director Terri Iguina and Henrico Supervisor Tyrone Nelson also shared remarks during the event.
Housing Families First reported $2.3 million in revenue and $1.6 million in expenses for fiscal year 2021, according to the organization’s tax filings for the year.
Elsewhere in the local nonprofit scene, the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust recently kicked off construction of a 10-home subdivision in Chesterfield County. Autism organization The Faison Center is working on what’s planned to be the last new building constructed as part of a campus improvement project.
Housing Families First has expanded its eastern Henrico facilities with a new wing that adds meeting and volunteer spaces. (Jack Jacobs photo)
When it first opened in 2000, Housing Families First was strictly a shelter for homeless people.
And now, two decades and additional housing programs later, the nonprofit has upgraded its facilities to support and grow those expanded services.
HFF has largely wrapped up a nearly $3 million expansion and renovation project that added a new wing and new amenities to its facilities at 3900 Nine Mile Road in eastern Henrico County.
The group has seen its client base increase over the years, and the project was deemed necessary to provide additional administrative and meeting spaces in addition to other improvements, Executive Director Beth Vann-Turnbull said in an interview after a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week.
“We haven’t done any significant renovations or expansions since 2000. At that time, we worked with maybe 15 to 20 families a year, maybe about 45 people. And last year, between all our programs, we worked with nearly 700 people,” Vann-Turnbull said.
Beth Vann-Turnbull
The project added a new 2,800-square-foot office wing that features two flex-space offices and a volunteer space, and brings the nonprofit’s facilities to a total of 17,500 square feet. Also included in the project was a new multi-purpose room, a new basketball court and expanded parking.
“As we added programs based on need over the years, we didn’t have the space to support them,” Vann-Turnbull said.
The group’s Hilliard House onsite short-term emergency shelter was also renovated and expanded. The nonprofit added 10 more beds to its shelter, which is now up to 40. It also added another private room for a total of 11 such rooms in the shelter.
Vann-Turnbull said the project is largely completed except for punch-list items. Canterbury Enterprises was the general contractor and Arnold Design Studio provided architectural design services. Henrico County leases the property to Housing Families First.
The capital project was fueled by the nonprofit’s recent Opening Doors for Families fundraising campaign, which raised $4.7 million.
“Opening Doors for Families exceeded expectations and enabled the expansion of the organization’s campus here in Henrico County,” Board President Harvey Chambers said during his remarks at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “The expanded campus builds on Housing Families First’s 20-plus years of success, and it will ensure the organization can serve more families with children in the Richmond region.”
Housing Families First Board of Directors President Harvey Chambers shared remarks during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the nonprofit’s expansion and renovation project. (Photo courtesy Gianna Stanley/Housing Families First)
Chambers said the campaign exceeded its original funding goal by more than 6 percent and was completed five months earlier than planned. In addition to the campus improvements, the campaign supports the nonprofit’s Bringing Families Home program, as well as provides reserve funds.
In 2020, the organization introduced Bringing Families Home, which helps students who attend Richmond, Henrico and Chesterfield public schools and live in motels or crowded homes move into permanent housing.
That program followed the 2012 addition of a rapid rehousing program called Building Neighbors, which provides assistance in finding and affording rental homes.
Housing Families First was founded as Hilliard House in 2000, though it changed its name in 2014. The original moniker lives on as the name for its shelter, which opened in 2001.
Vann-Turnbull, Operations Director Terri Iguina and Henrico Supervisor Tyrone Nelson also shared remarks during the event.
Housing Families First reported $2.3 million in revenue and $1.6 million in expenses for fiscal year 2021, according to the organization’s tax filings for the year.
Elsewhere in the local nonprofit scene, the Maggie Walker Community Land Trust recently kicked off construction of a 10-home subdivision in Chesterfield County. Autism organization The Faison Center is working on what’s planned to be the last new building constructed as part of a campus improvement project.