“Transylvania needed to do more to engage effectively with the community that has been our home for now nearly 250 years,” said university President Brien Lewis.
Transylvania University is selling the Marquard Field Complex, the former home to the Pioneer Baseball program. A consortium of local banks created a joint entity to purchase the land along Radcliffe Road and Haggard Lane and local affordable housing developers will build a combination of for-sale and rental properties on the land. A $3 million revolving capital fund has been created to support the development. As the project gets underway, repayment to the fund is made interest-free. The savings will be reinvested in future affordable housing projects.
President Lewis called Lexington "an incredibly attractive community" and said this development will help retain and bring talent to the city. “Having the opportunity really be and be seen as an effective contributing partner to that relationship is very important for us and we think will be compelling for people who want to come and study and work here.”
According to rent.com, Lexington ranked seventh for the highest rent increases in the country and last year saw a sharper increase than New York City. Raymond Daniels is the Board Chair of Lexington for Everyone, a nonprofit that educates and creates action plans to find more affordable housing opportunities.
“Housing goes hand in hand with jobs and job equity especially.” Daniels said, “The biggest way to really build our community is for folks to work right where they receive their services and close to their jobs.”
Ground is expected to be broken on the 12-and-a-half-acre property in 2025 with completion expected within the next three years.
