Habitat for Humanity, Giles Co. Technology Center students build homes for affordable housing

PULASKI COUNTY, Va. (WFXR)– Habitat for Humanity of the New River Valley (NRV), and students from the Giles County Technical Center partnered up in an attempt to tackle the affordable housing crisis in Pulaski County.

Throughout each school year, the partnership builds homes for families who are in need of help with housing. This is their eighth home built– seven of the homes are in Giles County, while the first one ever was moved to Pulaski County on Friday, Aug. 12th.

WFXR’s Kelsey Jean-Baptiste was on site of the build all morning. Movers loaded the first half of the structure at Giles Tech Center located at 1827 Wenonah Avenue in Pearisburg, then delivered it to 609 Henry Avenue, in Pulaski.

The move was repeated for the second half of the home.

Habitat for Humanity of the NRV says to complete construction they will have students from the Pulaski County Area Tech Center and volunteers from the T.G. Howard Community, and more– working on the home.

“It gives the students hands-on experience building a house, which is always awesome,” Habitat for Humanity of the NRV Assistant Project Manager Kiedeel Harroff, said.

She explains that Habitat supplies materials, and once the students complete their portion of the build, the house is moved to a property where it will become an affordable home for a family.

Typically 12 to 17 students will work on the homes. Harroff says, building these affordable homes is a necessity in communities like Pulaski.

“When we look in this area there is a lack of affordable housing. It’s great for families who want to actually own their own house one day. it gets them on the right trajectory to doing that,” said Harroff.

However, for habitat, this partnership is not the only way they plan to tackle the affordable housing crisis.

“We are trying to expand this program to other high schools in the area. This upcoming school year we will be working with pulaski county highschool building a similar high school on site,” Habitat for Humanity of the NRV Construction Program Manager Jeffrey Walls, said.

Walls says they are looking to expand multiple high schools in the area to give high school students the experience of giving back.

“It’s great for the students to learn and get actual experience that will be someone’s home for many years to come,” said Walls.

Once the three bedroom and two bathroom energy-efficient home is complete, it will be equipped with earth craft specs, and solar panels on the roof to keeep energy costs as low as possible.

Upon completion, the home will be available for purchase for qualifying families with 30% to 80% of the median income in Pulaski.

Applications for residents are currently being accepted. For more information go to the Habitat for Humanity website.

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