On May 6th, The Honorable Ray Aument, Pennsylvania State Senator 36th District joined by local officials celebrated Mission First Housing Group’s Grand Re-opening and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of Park Place Apartments, 155 East Park Street, Elizabethtown, PA. Mission First finished 18 months of rehabilitation work at Park Place Apartments, a 32-apartment affordable housing community.

Mission First was also joined by local officials: Justin M. Eby, Executive Director, Lancaster County Redevelopment Authority; Ray D’Agostino, Chairman, Lancaster County Board of Commissioners and Rebecca Denlinger, Borough Manager, Borough of Elizabethtown. Financial partners Kelly Wilson, Director of HEMAP, Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency; Jeanne Fields, Vice President, Fulton Bank, N.A. and Zenzi Reeves, Senior Vice President of Asset Management, Berkadia also provided their remarks on the project.

Mission First replaced the façade of the building’s main 3-story structure to prevent chronic moisture infiltration and added insulation, replaced all of the windows with new energy efficient windows throughout and replaced the roof. Mission First also upgraded the HVAC system, kitchens, bathrooms and flooring in the apartments where needed. Common areas were painted and new lighting and flooring was installed. Finally, the vestibule was rebuilt and a lift was added to make the building handicapped accessible.

“Preservation of affordable housing has been a core of Mission First’s operations since our founding.” said Chip Darling. “And preserving Park Place Apartments, a key affordable housing asset here in Lancaster County, speaks true to our mission to develop and manage affordable, equitable homes that support residents and strengthen communities.” said Chip Darling, Interim Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer, Mission First Housing Group.

Park Place Apartments is part of a five-property portfolio in York and Lancaster Counties acquired by Mission First in May 2018, and one of the few affordable housing resources in Elizabethtown. The building is a former factory which was converted to affordable housing in 1989 and had not been updated since.