Government officials and housing advocates gathered in East Austin in early January to celebrate progress on a new affordable housing community and commemorate the legacy of former President Jimmy Carter following his death Dec. 29.

The big picture

The Jan. 8 event took place at Pathways at Rosewood Courts, the city-backed redevelopment of the historic Rosewood Courts public housing complex that first opened on the east side in the 1930s. The Housing Authority of the City of Austin, or HACA, is building nearly 200 new affordable apartments there, including several modernized units in eight original remaining structures.
The January ceremony centered on a portion of the Rosewood project called Prospect Heights being developed by HACA and Austin Habitat for Humanity. The strip of 12 affordable townhomes on Poquito Street will be sold to lower-income, first-time homebuyers alongside the Rosewood apartments.

“We’re on a historical site. So not only is this a moment where we are making sure we don’t relive that history, but we are making making good history," Mayor Kirk Watson said. "One of the things that I and City Council have dedicated ourselves to is making sure Austin is an affordable place for everyone to be able to live, and this is part of that effort.”

After noting the project's significance for the East Austin community, local and federal leaders also spoke to Carter's longtime commitment to affordable housing development and Habitat for Humanity's efforts nationwide.
Attendees at a January ceremony at Pathways at Rosewood Courts signed a memorial wall honoring President Jimmy Carter. (Ben Thompson/Community Impact)
Attendees at a January ceremony at Pathways at Rosewood Courts signed a memorial wall honoring President Jimmy Carter. (Ben Thompson/Community Impact)
Travis County Judge Andy Brown read a proclamation marking Jan. 8 as "Jimmy Carter Day" in the county. And after crediting the Rosewood project and Austin's approach to affordability, Adrianne Todman, acting head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, commemorated Carter and his work with housing issues over the past several decades.


"We have lost a great human being, a phenomenal human being. And I think that if we wake up each day—particularly those of us in the housing industry—and reflect on what it meant to be his age and out there with a hammer and a tool belt and making sure that others who were vulnerable had what they needed. ... Let’s remember to embody the spirit of this great human being," Todman said.

Looking ahead, Austin Habitat for Humanity will host 2025 Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project homebuilding initiative this fall.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson presented acting HUD Secretary Adrianne Todman with a key to the city during a ceremony at Pathways at Rosewood Courts Jan. 8. (Ben Thompson/Community Impact)
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson presented acting HUD Secretary Adrianne Todman with a key to the city during a ceremony at Pathways at Rosewood Courts Jan. 8. (Ben Thompson/Community Impact)
The project

The more than $70 million Pathways at Rosewood Courts is bringing 184 new apartment homes and 12 ownership units to the historic housing site at Rosewood and Chicon streets.

Construction is expected to wrap up late this year followed by the arrival of both new residents and dozens of returning tenants who lived there before redevelopment began.


The Prospect Heights portion of the project was recently awarded $1.2 million in 2022 city bond funds as one piece of the tens of millions of dollars for affordable housing development authorized by City Council in December.
​​​​​​​The 12-townhome Prospect Heights within the redeveloped Rosewood Courts complex will be sold to lower-income homebuyers through a partnership between the Housing Authority of the City of Austin and Austin Habitat for Humanity. (Courtesy Housing Authority of the City of Austin)
The 12-townhome Prospect Heights within the redeveloped Rosewood Courts complex will be sold to lower-income homebuyers through a partnership between the Housing Authority of the City of Austin and Austin Habitat for Humanity. (Courtesy Housing Authority of the City of Austin)
Pathways at Rosewood Courts is one of several HACA-led redevelopments of historic Austin public housing complexes. The housing authority completed its Chalmers Court overhaul late last year, while similar work at Santa Rita Courts will take place in the future.