RANDOLPH —Twelve families became homeowners Thursday as Morris Habitat for Humanity celebrated the completion of the biggest affordable housing project in its four-decade history.

More than 30 volunteers, local officials and new residents attended the opening of the 12 condominium development in the township, known as The Crossings at Bennett Avenue.

The project, built at the former E.A. Porter industrial site, took 15 years to build. Phase I finished in June 2023 with the completion of an additional 25 condos.

Morris Habitat turned ‘dilapidated’ site into housing

Morris Habitat CEO Liz DeCoursey directed much of her praise Thursday to two people: her predecessor, Blair Schleicher Wilson, and former Randolph township manager John Lovell.

“They had a vision to transform what was a dilapidated commercial-industrial building on an overgrown site [into] a place where families and individuals can put down roots and call Randolph home,” DeCoursey said.

The site’s transformation began when Randolph donated the property to Morris Habitat. The township also contributed over $1.5 million for the project.

“This is a great example of affordable housing done right in this state,” Deputy Mayor Joe Hathaway said. To the new owners, he added: “Please immerse yourself into our community, dive right in.”

How new residents were chosen

It was not a simple process for the 12 families to become homeowners. Habitat’s program involves a “hand up, not a handout,” DeCoursey said. Each family had to meet requirements to be eligible and complete 200 to 400 hours of “sweat equity” in which they helped volunteers build their own condos.

“All of our families go through a rigorous process,” Loretta Rivers, the group’s director of family services, said at the ceremony. “We do it just like the bank: a pre-qualification, educational training, credit repair review, an eight-hour counseling program, and they get an affordable mortgage.”

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Morris Habitat helps families with down payment assistance, and each family’s mortgage is kept below 30% of their income.

“I just wanted to say thank you to everyone on the site for helping us,” said Leslie Mosquera, one of the new homeowners. “And to my lovely new neighbors as well who have been very welcoming.”

Funding for the project came from sponsors, donations and government grants. U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-11) secured a federal grant of $3 million. While Sherrill was unable to attend Thursday’s event, her deputy director, Kellie Doucette, was in attendance.

26,000 hours of volunteer work

“All levels of government have worked together here in over 26,000 hours of volunteer work,” Doucette said. “What was most important to the congresswoman was that we were meeting community needs and maximizing the federal funding that we brought back to New Jersey through these projects.”

Habitat’s construction volunteers, called “the faithful,” worked together with site supervisor Jason DeVito for three years to bring their vision to life. The oldest volunteer was 93 years old.

“Go out of your way to say thank you to donors and volunteers,” said state Senator Anthony M. Bucco, a Morris County Republican. “This is a fine example of how government, at all levels, can work together on a bipartisan basis to take what once was an industrial contaminated site and turn it into a beautiful community.”

The new residents will have access to a picnic area, play area and a bike path to local businesses on South Salem Street. Habitat also built a community room for residents to use at their disposal. Many of the selected families originate from South and Central America, but were born and raised in the U.S. Among the new community are 12 children, nine of whom will attend Randolph public schools.

“Congratulations, you’ve earned today.” Hathaway told the families.

Email: NFlanagan@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Morris Habitat for Humanity helps Randolph NJ families