The Bigham Place development is a community-focused affordable housing initiative led by People’s Emergency Center in West Philadelphia. Designed to support homeless families, low-income households, and local artists, the project combined supportive housing and affordable live-work housing across two sites along Powelton Avenue and Haverford Avenue. The development transformed long-vacant and blighted properties into high-quality affordable housing while contributing to the broader revitalization of the surrounding neighborhood and commercial corridors near University City and Lancaster Avenue.
Bigham Place created a diverse mix of affordable housing opportunities tailored to the needs of multiple populations within the community. The Powelton Avenue site included permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless families alongside additional affordable apartments for low-income households, while the Haverford Avenue site introduced affordable artist housing designed to help preserve the neighborhood’s long-standing creative community amid rising housing costs. Across both sites, the development incorporated family-sized apartments, accessible units, shared community spaces, and sustainable design features including LEED certification goals and green building elements. The project also emphasized neighborhood connectivity through proximity to transit, employment centers, healthcare institutions, retail corridors, and community services.
In addition to housing, Bigham Place was designed to provide residents with access to comprehensive supportive services that promote long-term stability and economic opportunity. Residents had access to case management, counseling, childcare, employment and training programs, financial literacy classes, and other family support resources provided through People’s Emergency Center’s extensive service network. By combining supportive housing, affordable family housing, and artist-focused housing within one coordinated development strategy, Bigham Place advanced PEC’s mission of strengthening neighborhoods while creating stable and inclusive housing opportunities in West Philadelphia.
Stone Sherick’s Role in the Project
Stone Sherick Consulting Group provided project development consulting support for the Bigham Place development, assisting with the coordination of financing, development planning, and implementation strategy across the project’s multiple sites and housing components. Their role included supporting affordable housing funding applications, coordinating layered public and private financing sources, and assisting the development team through predevelopment and project advancement activities. Stone Sherick worked closely with the ownership and project partners to help advance a complex mixed-population affordable housing development designed to support neighborhood revitalization, housing stability, and long-term community investment in West Philadelphia.
