When several market-rate residents at WC Smithâs 2M Street mixed-income property expressed misconceptions about the affordable housing program in the building, the Washington, D.C.âbased firm knew it had to address their concerns.
The 12-story building, located in Washington, D.C.âs NoMa neighborhood, is part of the cityâs New Communities Initiative, a local government program designed to revitalize severely distressed subsidized housing. Ninety-three affordable units, with 59 units set aside for residents of a former public housing complex, were included in the 314-unit community.
PROJECT DETAILS
Location: Washington, D.C.
Developer: WC Smith
Number of units: 314
Campaign began: May 2018
Campaign ended: August 2018
Although rents from apartment to apartment differ, the market-rate and affordable units are indistinguishable from one another and boast the same features and finishes. As a result, select market-rate tenants didnât understand why âthey had to live next to people paying less rent than they did.â
WC Smith jumped at the chance to clear the air with their âWhat 2M Means 2 Meâ marketing campaign, where the firm decided to give a face and a voice to a resident who lived in one of the affordable housing units. Lisa, a three-year resident at the time, agreed to tell her story in a short video. In the video, she shared how she had dreamed about residing in a âloving and peaceful building like 2Mâ and while she appreciated the buildingâs amenities, she valued âpeace of mindâ and the âsafe havenâ the most.
Lisaâs video was posted on the buildingâs blog site on Oct. 1, 2017, and immediately proved successful, with a decrease in the number of online complaints about the affordable housing. In addition to the positive responses, WC Smith saw a 61% increase in traffic in the month of October and an 800% increase in Facebook traffic.
Elena Lozina, SonderWorks
From there, the company invited all residents, including market-rate renters, to share their housing experiences, and the video series evolved into an outpouring of stories with 2M as the common denominator. âWe wanted to make clear that 2M was a place that all people, from a range of incomes, can call home, erasing or at least minimizing the âhave and have-notâ concept that could negatively affect our residents and the building overall,â says the company.
The campaign eventually ran as a contest, and winning stories were posted to the 2M website and social media channels, with winners receiving an American Express gift card and a professional photo shoot. The total cost of What 2M Means 2 Me was roughly $4,000 and was not a campaign aimed to affect lease-up, due to it being a stabilized property. However, the firm reports it reduced turnover by 32% quarter over quarter and created a welcoming community for all.