Secretary Turner, Senator Scott Visit Charleston Homeless Shelter, Tour Affordable Housing Development located in an Opportunity Zone
Charleston, S.C. - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner and U.S. Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, visited One80 Place, a homeless shelter in Charleston.
One80 Place is developing a 6-story, $44 million housing and shelter. This Opportunity Zone development will provide 70 affordable housing units and family shelter will be the first of its kind in the area with hopes to replicate the project across the country.
“I want to thank Senator Scott for welcoming me to the great state of South Carolina to witness firsthand the incredible work being done to serve South Carolinians, especially our most vulnerable communities. One80 Place is living proof that public-private partnerships work, which gives me hope and encouragement for the future,” said HUD Secretary Scott Turner. “There is still a lot of work to be done in this country. At HUD, we are taking inventory of where we stand, examining why we have the problems we have, and developing solutions for long-term sustainability. That’s why we are here in South Carolina, and I look forward to working with Senator Scott to tackle the homelessness crisis in this country, expand affordable housing, and ensure the future of the Opportunity Zone program.”
“To have the Secretary of HUD to stop by Charleston, South Carolina, invest his valuable time in seeing the progress that we are making as a community, it is a blessing … and it is also a blessing to have One80 Place working so hard on behalf of a critical issue. One of our top goals on the [Senate Banking] Committee is housing and affordability, and I'm thankful that we have a partner who's on the job every single day, leading the way from Washington, and many people in the local community, on the job, every single day, helping us take care of our own communities,” Senator Scott said at the visit. “Certainly, we're focusing on the regulatory environment. And frankly, the private sector as well … you look at our bill, the ROAD to Housing Act, it focuses on relieving some of the pressure in the system from a regulatory perspective. [I believe] that will allow for more homeownership, faster.”
Background
Senator Scott’s Opportunity Zones initiative has driven $84.7 billion to underserved communities, unlocking economic opportunities that were not previously available. As the leader of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during President Trump’s first term, Secretary Turner has been key to the success of the initiative.
The Opportunity Zones (OZ) tax incentive is helping tackle the nation’s housing crisis by making significant increases in housing supply. According to the Economic Innovation Group, OZs have led to:
- A significant and immediate increase in new commercial and residential development activity in targeted low-income communities, according to a study of building permits across 47 large cities through June 2022.
- The likelihood of investment in a designated census tract in a given month jumped by over 20 percent after OZs were enacted.
- The doubling of new national multifamily housing developments.
- OZs are home to about 10 percent of the country’s population but now account for 20 percent of all new market-rate multifamily apartment units being developed in the country.
- The creation of 172,000 new apartment units across 972 developments and 2,014 cities.
In his confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking Committee, Secretary Turner committed to visit areas like Charleston, South Carolina, to see firsthand the housing challenges Americans across the country face. In an interview earlier this year, Secretary Turner cited Senator Scott’s ROAD to Housing Act as a priority to help unleash investment in affordable housing initiatives across the country.