38-Building Rehabilitation funded through Historic Tax Credits

Built in the late nineteenth century as the Western Branch of the National Home Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, this scenic Leavenworth, Kansas campus has since provided homes and medical services for thousands of veterans – from the Civil War to present conflicts. In 1999, when the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced plans to demolish thirty-eight of the historic buildings, preservation activists worked with VA officials to develop a plan for reuse. The historic buildings were saved when the VA signed an enhanced use lease with Pioneer Group, Inc. developers to rehabilitate the buildings to provide veteran-related uses, including senior housing. The first phase, currently underway, includes the rehabilitation of eleven buildings into forty-five 1-2 bedroom apartment units. The project is funded through state and federal rehabilitation tax credits and senior housing tax credits.