The sounds of excavators and cement trucks were heard in Montgomery County after officials recently broke ground on Ardmore House II, an affordable housing project in one of the county’s most expensive towns.
HumanGood is building the 48-unit building, and the national nonprofit group is already operating a similar building in Philadelphia, the Janney Apartments in Port Richmond.
Barbara Desimone shed tears of joy that she found her home there.
“This doesn’t happen to me,” Desimone said. This is beautiful. It’s brand new. … And look at the refrigerator, my own refrigerator.”
The little things are a big deal for this 64-year-old who, for almost a year now, has had her own place, with her cat named Baby. She rescued him at her former home in North Philadelphia.
“It was $550 for a room,” she said. “A small room.”
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But after moving into Janney Apartments, Desimone, who received a small Social Security check, said she was paying much less for a lot more.
“I had never heard of $276,” Desimone said.
Next year, other 62-year-olds and older looking for an affordable home will get their chance in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Pennsylvania: Ardmore, Montgomery County.
The nonprofit group HumanGood broke ground last month on Ardmore House II, right behind the original Ardmore House, built by a different developer. HumanGood Vice President of Development Vidhi Anderson, also an Ardmore resident, said low-income seniors need this development in this neighborhood.
“So, these are people that we know personally and who are looking to move out of their rowhomes or townhomes because they’re older and they just want a safer place to live,” Anderson said.
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Montgomery County Board of Commissioners Chair Neil Makhija pushed for the $20 million development because he said many seniors simply receive too little to afford market-rate housing here.
“This is a housing project that’s going to help seniors stay here in Ardmore, in Montgomery County, and I hope to see many more projects like it,” he said.
Desimone was thrilled to know she would have new neighbors in a neighboring county.
“Whoever gets in there is lucky,” she said.
Developers expect Ardmore House II to be completed before the end of 2026.