Beacon Hill has a new building on Forest Avenue, and it carries the name of a man who never left the neighborhood.
On Wednesday, Oct. 7, city leaders and neighbors cut the ribbon on the Mabion, a four-story affordable apartment building at 2732 Forest Ave. It has 57 apartments: 11 one-bedroom, 32 two-bedroom and 14 three-bedroom units, according to KCTV. Eleven of those are set aside as supportive housing for families coming out of homelessness.
The development cost $19.3 million and took 18 months to build.
Rents are set at 60% of the area median income, and the supportive units are set at or below 30% of AMI. The ground level holds community rooms, on-site services and management offices. Inside, there's a furnished community room and kitchen, a computer area and a recreation deck. The outside got a community-inspired mural by OVERLAY and the art duo IT-RA Icons.
A name that means something
The building honors Pastor Ray Mabion, who came to the neighborhood in 1984, when it was one of the most underserved in Kansas City. He stayed through decades of decline and built a church, a ministry and a community.
"I was just recently out of the seminary," Mabion said. "But when I came down, I didn't know that this apartment ministry down here was filled with drug addicts, prostitutes, all types of people that the neighbors were really concerned about."
His wife, he said, told him they would stay and minister to the people there.
He admitted he wasn't eager to see his name on the building. "It was frustrating because I didn't want my name up there," Mabion said. "But they kept saying, yes, you stayed when everybody else was leaving. You did this. You did that. And so I finally gave it up."
Troy Nash, CEO of The Nash Group, said the building is meant to honor that commitment.
"They saw it in its glory days. They saw it when it was in economic despair. And they stayed," Nash said. "This is the most underserved and economically deprived community in all of Kansas City, Missouri. This is ground zero."
Who's behind it
The Nash Group and the Vecino Group developed the Mabion. Funding came from the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, the Missouri Housing Development Commission, the City of Kansas City, the Kansas City Housing Trust Fund, Bank of America, Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, Raymond James and Sugar Creek Capital.
Services are a big part of the plan. Mental Health America of the Heartland will provide on-site supportive services, KC Free Health Clinic will provide community health care, and University Health will provide mental health services.
Attendees included Mayor Quinton Lucas, Sen. Barbara Washington, Councilmember Melissa Patterson Hazley, Beacon Hill Community Council President Jeanene Dunn and Vecino Chairman Rick Manzardo.
The same team didn't wait long to start the next one. The day after the ribbon cutting, The Nash Group and Vecino broke ground on Promise Place, an 85-unit affordable development at 4423 Olive St. in the Ivanhoe neighborhood. KCTV reported that the City Council first authorized $3.6 million in Central City Economic Development Sales Tax funding for Promise Place and later committed more federal and local housing money. Together, the two projects add up to 142 affordable homes on the East Side.
"One of the things that quality housing does, it affects so many other areas," Nash said. "It affects your overall health and standard of living. It affects the environment, the community, the built environment. It affects your education levels and opportunities."
KCTV's coverage did not name the general contractor who built the Mabion.
Why it matters for Contractors
Eighteen months from start to ribbon on a four-story, 57-unit building with ground-floor community space is a pace worth noting, and it's the kind of mid-size affordable job that keeps a lot of Kansas City crews busy year-round. A building like this takes site work, structure, roofing, windows, MEP, drywall, flooring, cabinets and finish work, plus pieces like a recreation deck and a furnished community kitchen. The supportive housing piece also means service and office space built in from day one. The bigger takeaway: The Nash Group and Vecino delivered this one and broke ground on Promise Place a day later. Developers who move from one deal to the next like that are worth getting to know if you build or sub in the urban core.