For Immediate Release – October 28, 2026
Hope Village Opens Bringing First-of-its-Kind Housing and Health Care for Vulnerable Champaign County Residents
URBANA – The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) joined the Carle Health, Champaign County Health Care Consumers, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, local officials, community members, and construction and labor representatives to celebrate the grand opening of Hope Village, a $9.6 million housing development bringing 24 scaled homes for Champaign County’s chronically unhoused and medically fragile.
Constructed on previously vacant land, Hope Village offers more than a permanent place to live. The development pairs stable housing with direct access to healthcare and coordinated services designed to help residents maintain their health, regain stability, and build healthier lives. Through Carle Health and Champaign County Health Care Consumers, residents and those in the surrounding neighborhood will be better connected to medical services including preventative care, wellness visits, and laboratory services.
“Housing is healthcare. A person’s ability to recover, manage a medical condition, and maintain their health is directly connected to having a safe, stable place to call home,” said IHDA Deputy Executive Director Karen Davis. “Addressing the housing crisis requires collaboration across sectors, because no single organization can solve these challenges alone. Through the national Healthy Housing, Healthy Communities initiative, IHDA is working to bring housing and health care partners together to develop solutions that recognize the connection between where people live and their ability to thrive. Hope Village is a powerful example of what we can accomplish when we work together to put people first.”
Hope Village features 24 one-bedroom, single-story homes designed to provide residents with privacy, independence, and a sense of community. Each home includes a bed, bathroom, kitchen, living space, dishwasher, and private porch. Residents also have access to secure bicycle parking, walking paths, and a community garden. The development is just north of downtown Champaign near mass transit, Douglass Park, Carle Foundation Hospital, and other attractions, helping residents stay connected to essential services and neighborhood amenities.
“Hope Village reflects what becomes possible when people and organizations come together around a shared purpose,” James C. Leonard, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer of Carle Health said. “Our care teams continue to see the significant consequences patients experience with an inability to manage chronic conditions, recover from illness or injury and maintain good health without a safe, stable place to live. For people experiencing homelessness while also managing serious health challenges, a permanent and stable home can create an entirely different foundation for their lives. It is deeply meaningful for us to be part of this vision and see it become a reality for our community.”
All residents are referred to Hope Village from the Champaign-Urbana Coordinated Entry System and must be earning at or below 30% of the Area Median Income, or approximately $23,300 annually for a one-person household in Champaign County. Housing Choice Vouchers from the Housing Authority of Champaign County subsidize the rent for all 24 homes, helping ensure residents can access housing at an affordable cost on their road to recovery.
“For the individuals who will call Hope Village home, this is about more than having a roof over their heads. It’s about having the stability, dignity, and support they need to move forward. Many of our future residents have faced extraordinary challenges, and a safe, permanent home creates the foundation for a different future. We’re grateful to IHDA and the many organizations and individuals who helped turn this vision into a reality,” said Drew Martin, Executive Director of Hope Village.
The partnership extends beyond the development itself. As part of the initiative, Carle Health and the University of Illinois are supporting neighborhood health services, including a mobile care clinic and a produce truck to help address health care disparities and food insecurity in the surrounding community.
Hope Village received $7 million in funding from IHDA through the Rebuild Illinois Capital Bill, along with $2 million in grants from Carle Health and The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a construction loan from PNC Bank. The development was awarded funding under Round X of IHDA’s Permanent Supportive Housing Development Program.
While the idea of Hope Village had existed for years, it was the Healthy Housing, Healthy Communities (H3C) initiative that connected Carle with IHDA. Created by the National Council of State Housing Agencies and supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, IHDA was one of six state housing finance agencies (HFAs) to receive a grant to research ways to strengthen partnerships between HFAs, health care institutions, and community leaders to address the housing affordability crisis and its effect on health. H3C supported technical assistance, outreach, and community engagement with hospitals and developers to spur affordable housing that addressed community health inequities. IHDA is also supporting a second H3C development in Peoria.
Pictures of the development can be found here.
