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Effective Date:Nov 8, 2026
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The Columbia Housing Authority has kicked off a roughly $14 million redevelopment of Providence Walkway, celebrating the start of construction on a project that will renovate or replace 25 affordable rental apartments near downtown Columbia.
The project combines full interior renovations of 16 existing apartments with nine newly constructed apartments replacing demolished buildings. Financing brings together federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, tax-exempt bonds, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development resources and local public and private investment, according to the housing authority.
CEO Randy Cole said early work is already visible on the site. Crews have demolished an older laundry facility, completed stormwater and water infrastructure improvements, and cleared materials from apartments ahead of renovation.
The redevelopment targets problems that accumulate in aging affordable housing: limited insulation, shifting foundations and footings, and recurring sewer line breaks. The older units also lack modern basics that most renters now take for granted.
"Also, the older units didn't have high-speed internet or enough electrical amperage to power a dryer," Cole said. The updated apartments will include energy-efficiency improvements alongside the structural repairs, lowering utility costs for residents and bringing the buildings up to current standards.
The nine new construction units will replace buildings that had deteriorated beyond practical repair, giving the site a mix of rehabilitated and brand-new homes when work is complete.
All 25 apartments were occupied when the housing authority began exploring redevelopment, which means the project is as much a relocation operation as a construction one. The authority temporarily moves residents during construction and helps them return to their upgraded homes afterward.
"We pay for all the moving costs," Cole said. "We absorb all those expenses, utility hookups, and take really good care of our residents and then help them get back to their new apartments that they're really excited to move into."
The authority also holds resident engagement meetings to keep tenants informed as the work progresses. Cole emphasized that the location is a major part of the project's value, offering residents access to downtown employment, parks and neighborhood amenities within a short distance of their homes.
Each Providence Walkway apartment will have a project-based voucher attached to it, meaning residents' payments are tied to their income rather than the market rent. Households must earn no more than 50 percent of the area median income to qualify.
Project-based vouchers differ from the more familiar tenant-based Housing Choice Vouchers: instead of a subsidy that travels with the family, the assistance is attached to a specific apartment, guaranteeing that the unit stays affordable to low-income renters for the long term. For residents, the practical effect is the same - rent scaled to what they can afford - but for the community, the arrangement locks in a permanent stock of deeply affordable homes near downtown.
Applicants join a waiting list, with selection mostly first-come, first-served and a preference for elderly applicants. Cole said demand comes from a broad cross-section of the community.
"We do have a lot of working families that just need some help with some housing stability given the high cost of housing," he said.
The $14 million budget illustrates the layered financing that has become standard for affordable housing preservation. Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, awarded through a competitive state process, provide the largest share of equity. Tax-exempt bonds add low-cost debt, HUD programs contribute operating and capital resources, and local public and private investors fill the remaining gap.
Assembling that stack takes years of applications and approvals, which is why preservation deals of this size are relatively rare in mid-sized cities. For Columbia, the payoff is keeping 25 affordable apartments habitable and income-restricted for decades to come, at a fraction of what acquiring land and building the same number of new downtown units would cost.
Preservation also protects the existing community. Rather than losing affordable homes to deterioration or conversion, the city keeps low-income residents in place near jobs, schools and services.
Providence Walkway is moving forward alongside other Columbia Housing Authority development activity. Newly constructed Park Avenue apartments are opening as part of a separate authority development, adding to the city's affordable supply at the same time Providence Walkway's units are being renewed.
Beyond bricks and mortar, housing authority residents have access to after-school programming, case management and a family self-sufficiency program focused on income, savings and credit. Those services are designed to help families use stable, affordable housing as a platform for longer-term economic progress.
Specific contract rents for the renovated Providence Walkway apartments were not provided. The authority said its waiting list remains open to income-qualified applicants, with elderly households receiving preference in placement.
With demolition and infrastructure work already underway, the renovation of the 16 existing apartments and construction of the nine replacements will proceed in phases as units are vacated and prepared. The authority has not announced a firm completion date, but residents are expected to begin returning to finished apartments as each phase wraps up.
For Columbia, the project is a reminder that affordable housing is not only about building new - it is also about protecting what already exists. Twenty-five families will come home to safer, more efficient apartments with rents tied to their incomes, in a location that keeps opportunity close at hand.
The celebration this week was the culmination of a financing effort that became public in August, when the housing authority announced it had secured the roughly $14 million needed to move forward. Between the funding announcement and the start of construction, the authority completed pre-development work, finalized plans with its architects and contractors, and began the careful choreography of relocating families so demolition and renovation could proceed safely.
That sequencing reflects a reality of occupied rehabilitation projects: the construction schedule is built around people, not just buildings. Each family must be matched with temporary housing, moved with their belongings, and kept informed about when they can come home. The authority's commitment to cover moving costs and utility hookups removes what is often the biggest barrier - and the biggest source of anxiety - for residents facing a temporary move.
HUD's relocation standards for federally assisted projects require comparable, decent, safe and sanitary temporary housing and reimbursement of reasonable moving expenses. By absorbing those costs directly, the Columbia Housing Authority is meeting that standard while signaling to residents that their return is the plan, not an afterthought.
Columbia's rental market has tightened as the city has grown, driven by the University of Missouri, a major regional health care sector and steady in-migration. Rents near downtown have climbed, and older affordable properties like Providence Walkway face constant pressure: defer maintenance and the homes deteriorate, or invest and risk financing gaps that stall projects for years.
Nationally, the country loses tens of thousands of affordable homes each year to physical deterioration and conversion, a slow bleed that new construction alone cannot replace. Preservation deals like Providence Walkway are the counterweight - less visible than a groundbreaking for a new tower, but often the fastest and cheapest way to keep a low-income family housed.
The project also carries an energy dividend. Aging affordable housing tends to be the least efficient stock in any city, with drafty envelopes and outdated systems that push utility bills onto the families least able to pay them. The insulation, infrastructure and efficiency upgrades planned for Providence Walkway will cut those costs directly, making the homes more affordable in practice as well as on paper.
For the families on the waiting list, the message of this week's celebration is simple: twenty-five affordable apartments near downtown are being renewed rather than lost, and every one of them will carry an income-based rent when it reopens.
The nine newly constructed apartments will rise on the footprints of the demolished buildings, keeping the overall scale of the property consistent with the surrounding neighborhood while delivering modern systems, layouts and accessibility features that the original structures could not accommodate. The authority said the rebuilt and renovated units will be indistinguishable in quality, with the same finishes and energy-efficient systems throughout the property.
Residents interested in the waiting list can contact the housing authority directly. With elderly preference in effect and demand for income-based housing in Columbia running high, the authority expects the renewed apartments to fill quickly once they are ready for occupancy.
For Cole and his team, the coming months will be a test of coordination as much as construction: keeping families settled in temporary homes, keeping contractors on schedule, and keeping the community informed as each building is transformed. If the project delivers as planned, Providence Walkway will stand as proof that Columbia's older affordable housing can be renewed for another generation without displacing the people who call it home.
The authority said updates on construction milestones will be shared at its regular board meetings and through resident engagement sessions as the redevelopment advances.
The Columbia Housing Authority has begun a roughly $14 million redevelopment of Providence Walkway that will renovate or replace 25 affordable apartments near downtown Columbia, Missouri.
The project combines full interior renovations of 16 existing apartments with nine newly constructed units replacing demolished buildings. Financing includes federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, tax-exempt bonds, HUD resources and local public and private investment.
The work addresses limited insulation, shifting foundations, sewer line breaks and outdated electrical service, and adds energy-efficiency improvements. Crews have already demolished an older laundry facility and completed stormwater and water infrastructure work.
All 25 apartments were occupied when planning began; the authority is paying all moving and utility hookup costs to relocate residents temporarily and help them return. Each unit will carry a project-based voucher, tying rent to income for households earning up to 50 percent of area median income, with a waiting list preference for elderly applicants.
CEO Randy Cole said the redevelopment will preserve affordable homes near downtown jobs, parks and amenities. The authority has not announced a completion date, but residents will return as each construction phase wraps up.
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