Residents of a 62 and older apartment community shared concerns like mold and emergency maintenance gaps after ownership changed to ARHA.
ALEXANDRIA, VA — When Susie Kennedy and her fellow residents moved into The Alate senior apartments, they thought the community would provide amenities listed on its website. But the community was in the midst of an ownership change, as Bonaventure was selling The Alate to the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority. Since the takeover, a group of residents have sounded the alarm on concerns over mold, building security, emergency maintenance, cleanliness and transportation.
Over the summer, Alexandria City Council was asked to provide a guarantee for funding for the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority to acquire The Alate at 1122 North First Street in Old Town North. That means the city government would step in to cover debt service if the authority cannot make these payments. Closing of Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s purchase of The Alate happened on Aug. 6.
The authority’s purchase is intended to serve an estimated 110 residents of the Ladrey Senior High-Rise, a subsidized community for seniors and people with disabilities, at the same rent level. The Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority had planned for demolishing and building a larger Ladrey building with 270 units, but leaders later determined the project was not feasible due to a funding gap. Instead, the authority pursued The Alate purchase and will pursue renovations of Ladrey starting in early 2027.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, noting delays in redeveloping an obsolete building, suspended operating support for building management and required the authority to relocate Ladrey residents. In August, the authority said it would move Ladrey residents by the end of 2025.
The Alate is now operating under a new management company under Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority ownership. According to the authority, 18 of the 133 units at The Alate were occupied as of early August. Now, there’s a mix of residents leaving or remaining at the community. The residents have brought up concerns like mold on food and in the building, evidence of leaks on the lobby ceiling, the shuttle service being discontinued, no working management phone number for 24/7 emergencies, infrequent cleaning, inadequate security surveillance of the property, and lack or promised amenities.
“We’ve been given unhealthy food. We have had no on-site building emergency maintenance. We have had no type of secured front desk since August the 6th,” Kennedy told Patch.
Kennedy told Patch she moved to The Alate after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in January. She left her Prince William County home of 11 years to be closer to her daughter. She was approved for a unit through the city’s affordable housing program that limited her rent increases. In addition, the community manager told Kennedy she would get a $5,000 credit as an incentive for moving in within 30 days.
But as she was signing the lease, another employee informed Kennedy The Alate had been sold. Kennedy had already started the process of leaving her old home, selling old items and purchasing ones for the smaller unit. One of her friends found out about the sale two days after moving in during June.
Before the ownership transition, Kennedy recalls residents receiving catered dinners and breakfasts on occasion, fitness classes and several activities available each day. After the sale was announced, the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority held several meetings, and The Alate residents were offered $3,000 if they chose to move out. But if they stayed, Kennedy said “it was put to us that 100 percent of those amenities would continue at that time.”
The group of residents feel that promise of amenities has been broken.
“I came here with the thought that this is my forever home, and now it feels as though ARHA is doing everything in their power to get us out of here, and unless they evict me, I’m not going anywhere,” said Kennedy. “But I do want to stand up and say they have to hold up their end of the bargain.”
The lack of emergency contacts is one cause for concern for seniors, including a significant share with disabilities.
“We have no information on how to contact any management in this building, and when I tell you if something were to blow up in the middle of the night, we have no one to call,” said Kennedy. “That’s a huge safety issue. I had a breaker that kept popping in my apartment. It took me over a week, two weeks, actually, to get them to come look at an electrical issue in the apartment. But the bigger thing is, we have no one looking out for the building with people living in it that are senior citizens.”
The lack of a shuttle service is another concern to senior residents with medical needs.
“There are people here who don’t have cars, who depended on the shuttle service they were providing,” said Kennedy. “They don’t provide that anymore. We have a resident who gets dialysis three times a week, and they were providing that shuttle service to her. She doesn’t have that anymore. So she’s having to either call Uber or someone here, out of the kindness of their heart, transports her. These things aren’t acceptable.”
While some residents are able to leave The Alate, Kennedy said that’s not an option for her. Another resident noted some senior communities have multi-year wait lists.
“I can’t find anything like this in the City of Alexandria,” said Kennedy. “It’s going to cost me between $5,000 and $9,000 a month. I can’t afford that, not if I would want to have money for when I’m totally disabled.”
Kennedy said the stress of uncertainty with her living situation has made her Parkinson’s worse.
“Everybody here since the transfer or the sale has had issues where they’ve had to go on their meds,
added a resident who wishes to remain anonymous. “I’ve had tons of outbreaks that I don’t normally have, a rash. So there’s a lot of physical things that are going on with us, with our health, because of the stress.”
Call For Action From Residents
On Tuesday, the residents sent a letter to Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority leadership outlining their concerns and seeking actions. The residents say they are considering forming a resident committee and work with the authority on the concerns. According to the anonymous resident, the building manager, not ARHA, is holding an upcoming resident meeting.
The letter notes residents testified to City Council in June before the approval of the funding guarantee for the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s Alate purchase. Residents say Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins initiated a sidebar discussion involving Alate residents, the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority and City Manager James Parajon. According to the residents, they received reassurance from the authority and City Council that the Alate amenities would continue under the new ownership.
“We had hoped that ARHA would use the opportunity of ownership of the Alate building to rise to next level accountability rather than prior lower levels experienced by [Ladrey] residents,” the letter stated. “These concerns directly impact on our safety, well-being, and trust in ARHA’s stewardship of our living environment. Over half of the former residents have already vacated their apartments, and any new residents will soon discover these same grievances.”
The Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority has been in the midst of controversy over previous leadership. ALX Now reported in September that the board fired CEO Erik Johnson amid an investigation into him living in a public housing unit. Rickie Maddox was named the interim CEO.
“I can appreciate them going through management changes of their own, but I’m going to be very honest with you, I don’t care,” said Susie Kennedy. “What I care about is my welfare, and if I don’t advocate for myself, no one will.”
Patch has reached out to the mayor and Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority for comment on residents’ concerns. We will update this story when we hear back.