Fairstead, Harkins and ARHA Top Out $120 Million Samuel Madden Homes Redevelopment in Alexandria

Fairstead, a national real estate company focused on creating, preserving and improving affordable housing, celebrated the topping out of the $120 million Samuel Madden Homes redevelopment in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, the firm announced on Oct. 7, 2026. The milestone marks completion of the building's structural framework.

The project is being developed in partnership with Harkins, the Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority (ARHA) and The Communities Group. The six-story, 295,000-square-foot mixed-use building will feature 207 affordable residences reserved for families earning between 30% and 80% of the Area Median Income.

Topping-Out Event at Samuel Madden Homes

Fairstead, its project partners and local officials gathered to mark the milestone, according to the announcement. The event included remarks from project stakeholders, followed by guided rooftop tours.

The redevelopment is planned for completion in 2027, with delivery expected in fall 2027. Demolition of the existing community began in 2025, and construction followed in June 2025.

Project Details: 207 Affordable Apartments in Old Town Alexandria

The development sits at 899 and 999 N. Henry Street, at the intersection of Patrick, Henry and Montgomery streets. The site previously held the Samuel Madden Homes public-housing community, built in 1945, which consisted of 66 townhome-style units.

The new building will replace those 66 homes with 207 apartments, an increase of 141 units, or roughly 214%. The residences will range from one to four bedrooms and will serve households earning 30% to 80% of area median income.

Planned amenities include community gathering spaces and approximately 7,500 square feet of open space. The project will also include a neighborhood food hub of roughly 500 square feet operated by ALIVE!, along with other amenities intended to support residents and the broader Alexandria community.

The $120 million total development cost equates to approximately $406,800 per planned unit, or about $407 per square foot. Those figures reflect development cost and are not a sale price or market valuation.

Financing Structure for the Alexandria Redevelopment

The project combines public and private capital sources. Financing includes:

• $62 million in construction financing from Virginia Housing
• Approximately $48 million in Freddie Mac equity, syndicated by Boston Financial
• A $3 million soft loan from the City of Alexandria
• A bridge loan from Sterling Bank
• 4% and 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, a HUD Section 18 transaction and 45L energy-efficiency tax credits

The "9, 4 hybrid" structure uses separate ownership and investment components to combine multiple tax-credit sources. The transaction is a public-housing redevelopment and recapitalization rather than a conventional property sale.

City documents show the financing structure previously required additional local support, including a proposed $1 million City loan at an earlier stage of planning. The final package draws on multiple subsidies and credit sources.

Market Context: Higher-Density Public-Housing Redevelopment

Samuel Madden Homes is part of a broader shift toward higher-density redevelopment of aging public-housing sites. Rather than preserving low-density townhomes in place, the project uses the same land to deliver more than three times as many affordable homes while adding public space and community-serving amenities.

Old Town Alexandria is among the region's more established and affluent neighborhoods. The redevelopment places income-restricted units near employment, transportation and existing services.

The project also illustrates the layered capital stacks that affordable-housing developers assemble in high-cost markets, combining HUD repositioning authority, tax credits, government soft financing, agency debt and bridge financing. Earlier planning materials referenced a broader concept of up to 482 affordable, workforce and market-rate units; the current $120 million phase is the 207-unit Samuel Madden redevelopment.

Sources

Fairstead press release: https://fairstead.com/fairstead-and-partners-celebrate-topping-out-of-samuel-madden-homes-redevelopment-in-alexandria/