Reimagining Public Housing in the Virgin Island

Censere Consulting has been selected by the Virgin Islands Housing Authority (VIHA) to develop and implement the agency’s Portfolio Repositioning Strategy (PRS) is designed to reimagine the Islands’ housing portfolio.  The Strategy calls for the development of approximately 3,000 residential units at the cost of about $1 billion over the next decade. Moreover, the RPS will support the Government of the Virgin Islands (GVI) efforts to achieve sustainable recovery. 

VIHA is redeveloping its old public housing inventory by redesigning critical infrastructure inclusive of housing for low-and-moderate income families. Thus, the PRS will address some persistent problems associated with older public housing, such as too large developments, a high concentration of poverty, isolation of public housing communities, and wasteful building systems.  VIHA’s short and intermediate redevelopment plans are to work with our Territorial partners to transform poorly designed public housing to smaller attractive developments with larger apartments designed more efficiently, which incorporates significant energy-efficient elements to reduce utility costs to residents. A related goal is to work with the Territory to have recreational space such as parks and community centers designed and placed in centralized locations accessible to the entire community to reverse the isolation of recreation for residents in public housing. 

The RPS not only focuses on brick and mortar but on promoting resident self-sufficiency. Toward this objective, VIHA works closely with the U.S. Department of HUD, the Government of the Virgin Islands, and area agencies and organizations to provide services and opportunities, not only to our residents but to the entire community. The Authority’s mission is to function as a performance-driven, customer-focused sustainable business, advocating for, preserving, and developing quality affordable housing and self-sufficiency opportunities.

The Authority’s vision is to be the leader in developing affordable housing to ensure that all Virgin Islands residents have access to high-quality housing, providing a foundation for improving their quality of life, and achieving self-sufficiency.

Censere is excited to be a part of this endeavor.