See the Work
Randolph Place Apartments
An 1896 school building renovated for low-income seniors
“This is where I started my education. I never thought I’d come back again, I never dreamed of it.”
— Dorothy Tyler Allen, resident, Randolph Place Apartments
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register, Randolph Place is a 50-unit senior housing community in the heart of Randolph, a historic Richmond neighborhood. Formerly a public school, the original building was constructed in 1896 and added onto in 1946. After several years of vacancy the building was converted from a school into senior housing in 1986. And several of the current residents once attended school in this building where they now live.
The building anchors a corner in a redeveloped community of single-family homes. An adjacent community center opens to a six-acre public park with recreational facilities and open play spaces. With a bus stop less than a block away and a shops and restaurants three blocks away, Randolph Place embodies the essence of urban living.
The existing unit floor plans remained the same and current residents were able to stay in the building as the renovations were done a few at a time. The building envelope was repaired and upgraded, with a new roof, repaired windows and new exterior storm windows. With residents earning below 50% of area median income, it was imperative to lower monthly utility costs to ensure long-term affordability for the residents. In response to this need, the units were updated with new kitchens, Energy Star appliances, new HVAC systems and Energy Star light fixtures and bath fans.
Joshua managed the EarthCraft and Green Communities green building programs. These programs ensured that the renovations increased the health and comfort of the apartments for the residents and conserved local and regional resources. Joshua was also the Landscape Architect for the project, designing a productive landscape with a community garden, gathering spaces and native plants. The Rose Fellowship has helped BHC advance their green building efforts by using third-party certified green building programs in their development work.
Gallery
(hover over image to zoom)
by Unknown
1972 view of the school and students.
by Joshua Galloway
Gorgeous building, slate cupola roof, terra-cotta and granite details.
by Lynn McAteer
Replaced the lawn-based landscape with native trees, shrubs and ground covers.
by Jackson Smith
A long-time resident tours a completed apartment.
by Joshua Galloway
Blower door tests identified areas to be sealed, post-renovation air testing made sure the leaks were fixed. This improved resident comfort and reduced energy use and cost.
by Joshua Galloway
Details like the insulating of the pipes and water heaters had a small impact on the overall efficieny of each apartment. Combined with air sealing, new heat pumps, and new storm windows the final results were significant.
by Joshua Galloway
The new reflective roof is both historic and energy efficient.
Project Summary
- Location:
- Richmond, Virginia
Randolph Neighborhood - Program Scope
- Affordable rental housing units
- Child-care facilities
- Common residential amenity room (2,000 sq ft)
- Common courtyards/terraces
- Community garden (60 sq ft)
- Retail units
- Structured parking units
- Project Status
- Completed, October 2007
- Location:
- Richmond, Virginia
Randolph Neighborhood - Project Scope
- 30,209 sq ft gross site area
- Rehabilitation
- 3 stories
- 46,697 sq ft gross project area
- Program Scope
- Affordable rental housing units
- Child-care facilities
- Common residential amenity room (2,000 sq ft)
- Common courtyards/terraces
- Community garden (60 sq ft)
- Retail units
- Structured parking units
- Residential Unit Profile
Affordable units serve very low income households.
2 Studio 807-807 sq ft 48 1 BR 940-940 sq ft 50 TOTAL - Green Benchmarks
- EarthCraft House
- Green Communities
- Cost
917,440 Acquisition (land) 1,792,124 Hard (construction) 2,270,280 Soft (all other) 4,979,844 TOTAL - Project Status
- Completed, October 2007
