$30 Million Cooper Green Homes Renovation Wraps Up Early in Birmingham

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A nearly $30 million renovation of Cooper Green Homes, a 227-unit public housing community on Birmingham's southwest side, is finished. The Housing Authority of the Birmingham District (HABD) and its development partners celebrated with a ribbon-cutting on Oct. 14.

The project rehabbed all 46 two-story buildings on the 32-acre property, which dates to 1971. That works out to about $132,000 per unit. The work wrapped up ahead of the early 2027 target HABD gave earlier this year.

What was done

The building exteriors got:

• New roofs and gutters
• Energy-efficient windows and new siding
• Better attic insulation
• Brick repairs

Inside the apartments, the renovation replaced appliances, cabinets, countertops, plumbing, light fixtures, flooring, HVAC systems and water heaters.

The final phases focused on the grounds. The site now has an updated playground with shade cover and solar lighting, a new water park and a dog park. Crews also built a concrete buffer wall separating the community from a neighboring railway and fuel facility.

Who it serves

Cooper Green Homes is reserved for households earning 60% or less of the area median income. HABD provides rental assistance to keep rents affordable. The property also has a community center, a management office and a day care center with Head Start programming.

HABD is Alabama's largest public housing provider, serving about 23,000 residents.

How it was financed and built

HABD partnered on the project with Paces Preservation Partners, a joint effort of the nonprofit Paces Foundation and Soho Housing Partners. Synovus Bank provided financing together with United Bank, Bellwether and HABD. The partners did not release the amounts each lender contributed or name the tax credit or federal programs involved.

The partners also did not name a general contractor or architect. Soho Housing Partners describes its business as developing, building and preserving multifamily housing.

Work began around January 2025. HABD said before construction started that some residents might be moved to other units within the property during the work, but no one would have to leave the community. By March 2026, 118 of the 227 units were done, and the authority said the project was on schedule for completion in early 2027.

HABD President and CEO Dontrelle Young Foster called the project an investment in residents' future through substantial rehabilitation. Steven Bauhan, chief development officer of the Paces Foundation, said affordable housing is about more than preserving buildings. Steve Bien, president and CEO of Soho Housing Partners, said the partners looked for new ways to improve the property and keep it affordable.

U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell called the ribbon-cutting an important step toward addressing the housing crisis.

A second rehab in 15 years

This is not the first time Cooper Green has been overhauled. According to Bhamwiki, a community history site, an earlier phased renovation wrapped up in 2012 at a cost of about $42 million. That project cut the community from its original 312 units, demolishing some buildings and adding a management office, community building, maintenance shop and day care.

Timeline