Birch Arms

Homelessness is a stain on our society, but being homeless and mentally ill is simply something we cannot accept. As rents continue to increase to once unheard of levels – even in urban areas like Paterson – the ranks of the homeless continue to grow. Imagine how difficult it would be to deal with homelessness while also struggling with a mental illness. Sadly, there are far too many people in this predicament.

Our attempt to help provide housing and supportive services to the homeless mentally ill is a new apartment building we call Birch Arms. The building was designed to blend into a quiet cul-de-sac on Birch Street in Paterson and remain indistinguishable from existing market rate housing in the community. The building contains fifteen studio apartments equipped with private kitchens and full bathrooms. The building also includes common laundry facilities, a multi-purpose common room, resident lounges, high speed internet access, outdoor green and garden space, a security desk, and controlled-access entry.

All residents of Birch Arms are encouraged to participate in supportive social services provided by New Jersey Community Development Corporation. All social services offered to residents are designed to increase their ability to live and function independently.

Designed to reduce the building’s environmental impact and energy costs, Birch Arms was constructed using Energy Star standards. Additionally, an eighteen kilowatt photovoltaic array sits on the roof and produces electricity to reduce the building’s reliance on carbon-based energy.

You can even click here to view a monitor of Birch Arms’ solar panels to learn how many kilowatt-hours of energy are being produced on any given day and over the lifetime of the panels, as well as how many greenhouse gases have been avoided by use of this kind of renewable energy.

Birch Arms was completed in May 2008, serving fifteen residents with their own apartments.