BIA Voice June 2009 | Page 11

New Residents and HUD Secretary Help PHA Mark Opening of New Green Seniors Apartment Building The Philadelphia Housing Authority has ushered in a new era of environmentally friendly public housing with the opening of Nellie Reynolds Gardens, a 64-apartment building for seniors with an adult daily living center in North Philadelphia. Ceremonies were held in the building’s indoor garden under a large glass atrium, where new residents were joined by the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Steve Preston, who came to help celebrate PHA’s latest public-private partnership, costing $21.2 million. “This facility exemplifies PHA’s commitment to help our senior residents live with the kind of dignity they’ve earned. It also underscores how seriously we take our role as custodians of the environment,” said PHA Executive Director Carl Greene. The building features a 20,000 square foot green roof with natural vegetation that absorbs rainwater and prevents it from running off into an already over-taxed city sewer system. PHA Commissioner Nellie Reynolds is joined by HUD Secretary Steve Preston (left), PHA Executive Director Carl Greene, and Holly Glauser-Abel of the PA Housing Finance Agency at the ribbon cutting for the new senior development. Continued on page 12 Spring 2009 11