FELTON, Del. - State leaders, housing advocates and community members gathered Thursday morning to celebrate the grand opening of Reese Apartments, a new affordable housing community in Felton that developers say is already highlighting Delaware's ongoing housing shortage.
The 48-unit development reached full occupancy within six weeks and received more than 300 applications, according to Carson Development, the company behind the project.
Governor Matt Meyer joined local officials and development partners for a ribbon-cutting ceremony, calling affordable housing a critical issue that impacts nearly every aspect of residents' lives.
"Housing is an education issue. It's an economic issue. It's a healthcare issue. It's a community issue," Meyer said. "When families have stable housing, children do better in school, parents can focus on work, kids are healthier and communities can grow stronger."
Meyer said the new apartments help address a significant statewide need.
"According to the Housing Alliance Delaware, we're facing a shortage of something like 20,000 affordable housing units today. That's families, that's individuals, that's seniors who are simply looking for a safe, stable, affordable place to live. This starts to make a dent in it," Meyer said.
The demand for Reese Apartments became clear long before the ribbon was cut.
"The Reese received over 300 applications for 48 units. We're receiving anywhere between 10 to 20 applications a week, which is a direct reflection of the need specifically here in Kent County," said Danielle Smith, founder and CEO of Carson Development.
Smith said the project marks a major milestone for the company, which was founded in 2021 with a mission of creating affordable and workforce housing throughout Delaware.
"This project took about five years, so for it to be our first ground-up construction is really special to us and it's sort of just the beginning of our story," Smith said.
For residents like Martha Tucker, the apartments provide more than a place to live — they provide stability.
"When it was finished being built here at Reese, I was able to move in in March. And so now this place I can call home," Tucker said.
She said affordable housing allows residents to better manage other essential expenses.
"That we can survive and have money for groceries and other little things that we need in life or medication. Medication and food is one of the main things after housing," Tucker said.
Delaware State Housing Authority Director Matthew Heckles said rising housing costs continue to strain family budgets across the state.
"We have more and more rent-burdened families, families that are paying 40 and 50 percent of their income for their housing costs," Heckles said. "If you're paying that much for housing, you don't have a whole lot left over for food, for education, for after-school programs, for cars or car repairs. And that forces a lot of people to really struggle and live paycheck to paycheck."
Heckles said affordable housing developments can also play a role in preventing homelessness.
"We see more and more families who are experiencing homelessness. So we're responding to try to get those families stabilized and into stable housing. But one way that we can help that problem is to make sure that they don't become homeless in the first place, and that's creating affordable housing," he said.
Several community organizations, including the Food Bank of Delaware and Delaware State University's Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, attended the event to connect residents with food assistance, nutrition education and other support services.
Officials say the overwhelming interest in Reese Apartments underscores the continuing need for additional affordable housing developments across Delaware.
