Mountaintop Homes aims for May ’25 wrap in Mount Vernon

Ken Palermo: Involvement in low-income housing ventures helps meet the nonprofit's mission.

Marty Duda: Work in Mount Vernon is nearly 85% complete.

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A collaborative effort by a pair of Springfield organizations – a development company and a faith-based nonprofit – has led to construction of a housing community in Mount Vernon set to launch by spring 2025.

Officials with O’Reilly Development Co. LLC and Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri Inc. say Mountaintop Homes, a 42-unit affordable housing development, consists of two phases. The first phase, comprising 26 units, is on track to finish by March of next year. Phase 2, which includes the last 16 units, is set for a May 2025 completion, said Marty Duda, development project manager with O’Reilly Development Co.

“I would say we’re right around 80%-85% complete,” Duda said of work on the 11.4-acre project site at 1516 S. McCanse St., located north of Interstate 44 near the Mount Vernon City Cemetery and the Missouri Veterans Commission facility. “The project is really progressing nicely.”

The housing community is designed for homeless and at-risk veterans, as well as families of lower incomes. O’Reilly Build LLC, a subsidiary of O’Reilly Development Co., is general contractor for Mountaintop Homes, which will have three residential buildings along with an office and community structure comprising its 43,000 square feet. Designed by Kansas City-based Stark Wilson Duncan Architects Inc., all buildings will have a mix of two- and three-bedroom units in a two-level townhouse model.

Of the 42 residential townhomes under construction, Duda said eight will be set aside for veterans and their families who are at risk of homelessness. Additionally, one of the development’s amenities is an on-site Americans with Disabilities Act-accessible playground, which is adjacent to the community room.

Getting connected
A groundbreaking was held in October 2023 for the project. Washington-based HRM Services LLC will serve as property manager and Catholic Charities will have an on-site housing case manager, said Ken Palermo, CEO of the nonprofit.

Catholic Charities in 2021 was recognized in Springfield Business Journal’s Economic Impact Awards as the Charitable Nonprofit of the Year, according to past reporting. The scope of services among its 39-county coverage area includes disaster recovery and construction, homeless prevention, developmental disability services, a crisis maternity home and supportive services for veterans. Through its mission, the organization “seeks to improve the lives of the vulnerable by providing quality, compassionate social services, which meet local needs,” according to its website.

With a 107-person staff and an operating budget this year of $9.5 million, Palermo said Mountaintop Homes provides an opportunity for the nonprofit to bring services to its clients in the community.

“That’s opposed to actually sending your case manager out to go knock on the doors or do things like that,” he said.

Although the nonprofit has been involved in smaller projects such as building a duplex in Joplin with the assistance of partners such as Habitat for Humanity, Palermo said Mountaintop Homes is by far the largest affordable housing development it has ever tackled. It also marks Catholic Charities’ first collaboration with O’Reilly Development.

“It’s the right type of project because of what it offers us when it comes to fulfilling our mission,” Palermo said.

“When you look at a project like this that’s going to be 42 units, that’s going to give us an opportunity to put that many roofs over peoples’ heads quite quickly as opposed to doing one-offs on an already strained inventory for low-income housing.”

According to Washington, D.C.-based organization National Low Income Housing Coalition, there’s an availability shortage in Missouri of over 120,000 rental homes for extremely low-income renters. Data from the agency notes the average income limit is $28,580 for a four-person household in that category.

Palermo and Duda declined to disclose project costs, but said it is being funded through state and federal low-income tax credits.

Duda said O’Reilly Development also has previously utilized tax credits for other affordable housing projects over the past several years in southwest Missouri. Those include Forest Park North Apartments in Joplin, Tower Village in Lebanon and James Place in Springfield.

“Our bread and butter at O’Reilly Development is senior living communities and continuum of care communities here in the Midwest,” he said. “We do also like to provide a mission-driven portion of the company here for income qualifying projects like the one in Mount Vernon.”

For Mountaintop Homes, HRM Services owner Deb Giffin said the maximum income is based on 80% area median income, which for a family of five people is $66,880. The two-bedroom units will rent for a maximum of $625 per month, while three-bedroom units will be $700 monthly, she said, adding a security deposit equal to one month’s rent is required.

In discussion
O’Reilly Development is interested in another affordable housing project in Lebanon, Duda said, but added the company was not awarded tax credits this year to help fund it. Those types of projects are cost-prohibitive without tax credit assistance, he said.

“We’re going back to the drawing board trying to see if we can pursue that project for maybe next year,” he said, adding the company also has talked with Catholic Charities about teaming up for it. “There’s a possibility for another partnership with them there, but it’s been a great experience working with them.”

Palermo said his organization also anticipates additional discussions with O’Reilly Development on the Lebanon project along with other affordable housing opportunities in its service area.

“This is very much a model we want to duplicate because we believe it can be successful, not only in helping address areas of low inventory in low-income housing but also helping our organization meet its mission,” he said.