CASWELL MANOR
Caswell Manor is a permanent supportive housing development at the intersection of East Fifth Avenue and Winona Street. Caswell Manor will be VMC’s second supportive housing site, and fully opened in May 2023. Minvilla Manor, a 57-unit permanent supportive housing complex, is located on Broadway in North Knoxville.
VMC's first permanent supportive development, Minvilla Manor, opened its doors in 2010
Permanent supportive housing works to solve chronic homelessness. Caswell Manor will build on the success of Minvilla Manor to place more people in permanent, stable housing. VMC and its community partners will offer all of the necessary services to ensure a positive, lasting and cost-effective outcome.
Caswell Manor includes 48 one-bedroom apartments each with a private kitchen and bathroom. Residents will also share a community building, which will house property and case management offices; lounge and dining areas; computer lab; and laundry room. A patio will be constructed at the back of the building to accommodate outdoor seating and activities. The development will be energy efficient and meet THDA’s ENERGY STAR design criteria.
Caswell Manor will serve people who are experiencing chronic homelessness, providing stability, support and re-integration into the community. Services will include interpersonal counseling, skills training, workforce re-entry training, education, financial literacy, life enrichment, field trips and more. Property attendants will be on-site around the clock, seven days a week, with weekday professional case managers working in close cooperation with the McNabb Center and Cherokee Health Systems.
Volunteer Ministry Center procured more than $10 million in state, federal and private financing for investment into the Knoxville community, in addition to $1.4 million of local public funding through the City of Knoxville’s Affordable Rental Development Program.
Caswell Manor will be professionally managed by Emerald Housing Management a third-party management firm with experience operating supportive housing within Section 42 and U.S. Housing & Urban Development Department (HUD) requirements.
While funding is in place for construction, individual contributions are needed to transform the building into a home. VMC plans to work with community supporters and businesses to complete the finishing touches.
Who We Are
VMC is an inter-faith, ecumenical, professional social service organization focused on providing housing-first solutions to Knoxville’s unhoused neighbors, in cooperation with local partners and non-profit organizations. Since 1987, VMC’s programs have expanded to include: The VMC Resource Center, The Bush Family Refuge, Minvilla Manor, Street Outreach, and the VMC Dental Clinic.
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Building On The Success Of Minvilla Manor
The first thing you will notice about Jonathan is his big smile and bright happy face. Jonathan is one of our youngest residents at Minvilla Manor. He moved into his apartment in 2011 and has been a model resident for ten years. Life has had its challenges for Jonathan, but in spite of the ups and downs he keeps on smiling and working hard to make something of himself. Minvilla Manor has given Jonathan more than a home, it has given him a new lease on life and opened doors for new opportunities and a life of fulfillment and growth.
Gary was a resident of Minvilla Manor since 2011 before passing away in late 2021. He experienced homelessness for nine years and became homeless due to a disability and mounting health problems that led him to losing his job of seven years. Gary related that Minvilla Manor allowed him to take care of his health issues and to gain the hope that allowed him to rebuild his life.
Emmett holds one of the youngest volunteers at Minvilla Manor! He was one of the first to move into Minvilla Manor when it opened in 2010 and it continues to be his home today. Before Minvilla Manor, life was not good for him and he struggled with mental illness and drifted for many years until an encounter with a case manager that changed his life. Emmett was able to get the help that he needed to achieve housing and have a safe place to call his own.
Candace become a resident of Minvilla Manor in 2011, after nine years of living on the streets. Her world was bleak as she had experienced over thirty hospitalizations for mental illness. Minvilla Manor has allowed her a safe place to receive the medication and mental heath care that she so desperately needs to sustain her housing.