By Shernita Bethea
Housing/Human Services Manager

The Chesapeake City Council recently approved a proposal by Virginia Supportive Housing to build a 60-unit Supportive-Room Occupancy (SRO) Apartment complex in South Norfolk.  The project, called Chesapeake Regional Apartments, would be the fourth supportive-room occupancy facility in the region, modeled after Gosnold Apartments in Norfolk, Cloverleaf Apartments in Virginia Beach and, most recently, South Bay Apartments in Portsmouth.

The region recently celebrated the grand opening of the third regional supportive housing residence, South Bay in Portsmouth in February. These projects were developed by South Hampton Roads Regional Task Force on Ending Homelessness (Task Force), a collaboration of seven localities in Virginia -- the Cities of Chesapeake, Franklin, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, and Isle of Wight County – as well as  non-profit organizations, The Planning Council,  the United Way of South Hampton Roads, and the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission.  Formed in 2005, the Task Force is a “working group” that implements the regional activities approved by the Mayors and Chairs of the localities in South Hampton Roads. This project is a part of a regional effort to end homelessness in 10 years.