The Sparrow is located on Carolina Beach Road near Independence Boulevard, on the site of a former City of Wilmington firehouse.
Councilmember David Joyner says that location is meaningful.
“It is still a site about resilience and service, just in a new way. As we move into the affordable housing and the supportive housing space, it represents stability, dignity, and a fresh start for people who need it the most," he said.
The 3-story project includes 32 single-bedroom apartments, many of them with accessibility features for the disabled tenants who will be moving in over the next several weeks.
Good Shepherd Director of Development Megan Hutchings said every detail was carefully considered.
"All of the colors are trauma-informed," she said, standing in a blue and gray apartment. "All of the furniture was specifically purchased for these units, and even down to the bedding, everyone's got, like, a little bit of personal touch in here."
Construction on the project was completed in just 11 months — the groundbreaking was in June of last year. There are several common areas, including a library with computers, a community room, a meeting room, and case manager offices.
Each unit is furnished with everything a tenant could need, down to the dishes and cookware. Many residents are coming directly from the streets or from a shelter, and the new tenants are selected in a process with the Continuum of Care. Those who've been homeless the longest and who are most vulnerable get in first.
The project is right next to a busy section of Carolina Beach Road, but the windows and doors are designed for sound dampening, and it's quiet in the building even when the street is noisy.
Funding for the project came from the City of Wilmington, the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, and the SECU Foundation, alongside private donors. SECU Foundation also funded Good Shepherd Center's Lakeside Reserve, which has been the inspiration for 10 other projects across the state that follow best practices.
Jama Campbell, SECU Foundation’s Executive Director, said it’s about following best practices.
“We're really excited that this model is being shared. It obviously works. It's going to benefit our members, it's going to benefit our neighbors. So I can't imagine a better way for us to invest our funding," she said.
The new residents will get phased in over the coming weeks, a handful at a time, so they can get acclimated and invite their new neighbors in. At The Sparrow, the chronically homeless and disabled individuals will pay 30% of their income for rent, even if that income is zero dollars. And with in–house case management, they can move toward their own goals, whether it’s health, employment, or reconnecting with family.
To celebrate the occasion, Good Shepherd Center's executive director, Katrina Knight, wore a gold necklace with two sparrows. And she told a story she read about a sparrow that tried to put out a ferocious fire — one of many reasons she chose the name for the new project.
"It was a big fire. It was scary, it was overwhelming. So no one was doing anything. A little sparrow began to fly to a nearby river, and get a drop of water in his beak, and take it back to the fire," she said. "The other birds watched, and they laughed at him. And finally they said, 'Don't you see, your beak can only hold a few drops of water. You'll never put that fire out. So it's pointless.' And the little sparrow said, 'but I'll know that I tried.'"
Knight called it her "sappy little sparrow story," but said there's a lesson there. "It's so obvious to me that we're celebrating today because of all of you, and in 100 more, you all and others agreed at some point that you'd carry a little water, maybe a lot of water. And some of you pointed us to where we could go find some water. Others of you said, 'we think you're on the right track: keep going.' Imagine what our community could become if we all committed to carrying what we're capable of."
This project was one component of Good Shepherd's capital campaign, Home for Good, a $21.5 million capital campaign. The organization is still fundraising to expand its campus on Martin Street for additional homeless services, a dedicated family shelter, and 24 permanent supportive housing apartments for the chronically homeless. The organization has raised $12.5 million in donations, but still has $9 million to go.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story referred to the complex by the wrong name.
