The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has described the housing market as in “crisis,” citing “a decade of underbuilding following the Great Recession and surging demand from millennials entering prime home-buying years.” This, in turn, has driven health systems to play a more direct role in supplying housing options for their employees.
Martha’s Vineyard Hospital
This includes Oak Bluffs, Mass.-based Martha’s Vineyard Hospital, part of Somerville, Mass.-based Mass General Brigham, which is building housing for employees to help retain staff and support essential services.
The housing sits on a 26-acre parcel, now part of a 28-acre development, near MVH and close to the Atlantic Ocean.
Groundbreaking took place in August 2024, and the deadline for applications for the workforce housing is July 18, hospital spokesperson Greg Mathis told Becker’s. He expects the lottery for the housing to occur by mid-August and hopes people will begin moving in Sept. 1.
The site includes a 48-unit apartment complex with three buildings, along with duplexes and townhouses totaling more than 70 bedrooms. Mr. Mathis said one of the three apartment complex buildings received its occupancy permit about a month ago, and occupancy permits are expected for the other two buildings by the end of next week.
The housing development, paid for through fundraising, is estimated to cost $38 million.
Emory Healthcare
Atlanta-based Emory University shared plans July 7 to renovate two buildings to house staff at Emory Healthcare, its clinical arm.
According to a university news release, the project will adapt and reuse two properties near Emory University Hospital Midtown to create more than 50 rental apartments for staff, including nurses and medical technicians whose salaries fall within specific levels.
Both Peachtree Street properties are more than 100 years old.
Emory said it has already completed an internal abatement and cleanup at one of the properties and is planning additional improvements, including a new roof.
At the second property, Emory plans to remove the rear half of the building to allow daylight exposure to the north side of the property.
“This project will provide Emory Healthcare staff with competitively priced housing close to work to improve their employee experience and quality of life,” Robin Morey, vice president of campus services and chief planning officer of Emory, said in the release. “In addition to helping with the recruitment and retention of our workforce, our design will activate this area of the city with residential units and commercial uses.”
Mr. Morey said Emory plans to use federal and state tax credits to offset initial capital costs of the project.
Novant Health
Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health shared plans in January to develop 140 workforce housing units for healthcare professionals, first responders and other critical service industry workers on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina.
Construction on the units is slated for completion by the end of 2026.
“This project underscores Novant Health’s mission to support the people who make Hilton Head a thriving community,” Joel Taylor, market president for Novant, said in a news release shared with Becker’s. “Essential workers are the backbone of our community, and this development ensures they have access to stable, quality housing close to where they work and serve.”
Health systems and universities are the only ones involved. City officials are also involved in efforts to provide hospital workers with housing.
Waterbury, Conn.
In Connecticut, officials in Waterbury are planning apartment housing for hospital workers at the property of a former school.
City officials plan to sell the three-school building property near Trinity Health’s St. Mary’s Hospital to a private developer to create the housing, CT Insider reported July 14.
A proposed $1.6 million purchase agreement with Kaybar Development is on the table but still awaits full approval.
The developer’s current proposal is a complex of 80 one- to three-bedroom apartments on the former school property, with a projected cost of $18 million to $20 million.
