Enhanced Capital’s Impact Real Estate group has partnered with Allen University, a historically black university (HBCU) serving minority college and graduate students, to fund the redevelopment of the historic Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital in Columbia, SC. The Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital is a 19,935 square foot building that was constructed in 1952 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

From 1952 to 1973, Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital served as an alternative site of care for Columbia’s African American population. The state-of-the-art hospital was the only facility to exclusively train African American nurses, which was notable during the Jim Crow Era in South Carolina. It housed a pharmacy, laboratory, X-ray room, staff dining room, two operating rooms, and 50 beds to service the local community.

The Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital is one of Enhanced Capital’s latest projects that seeks to stimulate regional economic and communal growth by preserving and improving historic buildings. The Miller Roy Building in Monroe, LA, was built in 1929 by two African American doctors and served as an economic hub for Black-owned businesses. Enhanced Capital’s financing helped transform the crumbling, vacant landmark into 18 affordable apartments and a ground floor space for community services.

As a bridge from Columbia’s past to its present, the site will house valuable space for Allen University to provide two graduate degree programs for 255 students. The University is a small, faith-based institution serving minority college and graduate students. Allen University offers quality education for students who may not have had the traditional preparation and means to afford one. The project will also include a new-build annex to honor the nine victims of the 2015 massacre at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston.

In Columbia, 52.9% of the population lives in poverty, and the median family income is $17,406. But preserving historical sites like this is not unique to similar low-income areas. In fact, Enhanced Capital is seeing incredible interest from development partners and local institutions regarding similar projects across the country, cementing the idea that a region’s future can and should draw inspiration from its past.