Construction has started on a $19 million affordable housing development in Greenville’s historic Southernside neighborhood.
Southernside West will provide housing for low- and moderate-income residents aged 55 and older. Ten percent of the apartment units are reserved for individuals with disabilities. The 54-unit senior apartment complex will specifically target households earning between 30% and 80% of the area median income.
Harmony Housing Affordable Development is partnering with the Greenville Housing Fund to develop the affordable housing project. The development partners were joined by elected officials and community leaders to break ground on Southernside West on Aug 5. The project’s construction is expected to be complete by October 2027, with leasing starting by the spring of 2028.
“This development is a lasting investment in the people who have helped shape the Southernside community and deserve a safe, welcoming place to call home,” said Aimee Gornto, senior development associate with Harmony Housing Affordable Development.
The four-story senior apartment complex will be constructed at 846 W. Washington St., the former site of the Southernside Block Partnership. The nonprofit community center was founded in 1982 by Lila Mae Brock, the late mother of Greenville City Councilmember Lillian Brock Flemming. The city of Greenville donated the property for Southernside West.
“When you build something in a neighborhood that’s vital and needed by the people who live in the neighborhood, as well as other people in the city, then it’s not just a construction. It is building hope,” Flemming said.
Once completed, Southernside West will consist of 39 one-bedroom apartments and 15 two-bedroom apartments. Residents will enjoy several community amenities including a fitness center, a community room, free on-site parking and bike racks. The apartment complex will also be two blocks away from Greenville’s Unity Park.
Southernside West is the sister project to Southernside East, a 93-unit senior affordable housing complex under construction at the corner of West Washington and Hudson streets. Construction of Southernside East is scheduled to be finished in late 2026. Leasing for the apartment complex is anticipated to start in the first quarter of 2027.
Greenville Mayor Knox White said the projects will create senior housing for longtime Southernside residents and provide an opportunity for former residents to move back to the neighborhood. He explained that the city plans to work with its development partners in the future to create workforce, missing-middle and single-family housing in the neighborhood.
“We really do want this to be a neighborhood for everyone again,” White said.
SC Housing awarded a 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credit to Southernside West in 2025. Huntington Bank, CommunityWorks and Freddie Mac also provided financing for the affordable housing project. In addition, Southernside West received 14 project-based vouchers from The Greenville Housing Authority.
The project team for Southernside West consists of Creative Builders, McMillan Pazdan Smith and Thomas & Hutton. NHE Inc. will serve as the property manager for the affordable housing complex once it opens
