The project reuses a previously developed site, greatly elevating the quality of the housing units in the neighborhood while increasing dwelling density.
Randee Rogers Apartments replaces an outdated Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency (MDHA) training center complex while continuing to honor the person after whom the original facility was named. During the late 1970s, Randee Rogers worked for MDHA and advocated for its residents and racial integration. At one point, she and her two young daughters moved into the Preston Taylor public housing complex for several months to better understand the needs of those she served. Tragically, Ms. Rogers suffered a fatal fall in 1980 at age 35.
The new facility named for Randee Rogers was designed to help develop a mixed-income community without displacing any current residents of the area. All 100 of the one, two and three bedroom apartments feature market rate amenities, with 25 of the units renting at market rates, another 25 renting at “workforce” rates, and the remaining 50 reserved for subsidized rental.
The project site borders the Germantown and Buena Vista neighborhoods, five minutes walking distance from downtown Nashville to the south. The narrow lot, sandwiched between Rosa L. Parks Blvd. to the east and Delta Avenue to the west, required careful planning to accommodate the necessary number of units and parking garage, while providing considerable site amenities and ample landscaping.
“As Nashville continues to grow, affordable housing for locals is increasingly harder to come by. We were honored to work alongside MDHA to design this new mixed-income residential complex as an option for both low and middle-income residents in this unique area, close to Germantown, Downtown Nashville, and North Capital.”
The exterior facades at Randee Rogers feature red brick and darkly painted fiber cement siding to blend with and complement the industrial-chic of the surrounding neighborhood. Permanent seating, raised planter beds and concrete game tables are scattered throughout the site. Painted murals from metal walls of the original training complex were carefully photographed and these colorful, stylized images of notable nearby buildings, including the State capital, the Tennessee Tower and the Davidson County Courthouse plaza, were applied to metal panels on exterior building and retaining walls at their original location on the site and elsewhere within the development. All apartment units feature either covered grade level porches or balconies with views of the on-site plazas, the surrounding neighborhood and downtown Nashville.
Interior amenities include a large, two-story entry lobby/atrium with a first floor leasing/support office and mail facilities. An exercise room is located on the third floor and a resident’s computer room and community room are both located on the fourth floor. All four apartment levels have direct, interior access to the integral four-story parking garage via a pair of elevators and numerous stairways.
CLIENT IMPACT
The Owner desired to upgrade/diversify the subsidized Randee Rogers neighborhood with the addition of the maximum number of mixed-income apartment units possible. They requested that the design include 100 one, two and three bedroom units along with an integral parking garage. The finished product fulfilled these requirements while greatly improving the quality of the neighborhood’s dwelling units, its appearance from adjacent roadways and neighborhoods, its walkability and shared site amenities.
The Owner, tenants and nearby residents have all been very complimentary of the new facility. Several of these nearby residents have relocated to the new building and many more are eagerly awaiting continued new development in the area. The new complex has taken a former eyesore and converted it into a place which is a boon to all neighborhood residents and which appears to provide them a source of pride and hope for further local improvements.
THE MURAL
The existing mural was removed and stored off-site during the site demolition package. The mural has been photo-documented before its demolition.
Once the mural was converted into a digital format using the program Adobe Illustrator, the shop drawings provided a layout of the image on the panel grid depicted on the contract drawings for the owner and architect to approve.
The contract documents show panel identification numbers for each panel on the elevations. Each section of material was screen printed on either metal or perforated panels.
Before - Original Mural
After - Randee Rogers Apartments Mural
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
During early stages of design, residents of the community were invited to several meetings where they were able to review site and building plans, elevations and renderings of the future development. The designers explained the project and received feedback from residents on changes that they felt would improve it. Where feasible, these requests/recommendations were incorporated into the design. This interaction with the community has given individuals a sense of ownership in the design and the project has given them a sense of pride in their newly improved surroundings.
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