Reconnecting Union Heights: A Vision for Resilience and Justice
Project Overview
The Union Heights community of North Charleston, South Carolina has a powerful vision to build long-term resilience through a transformative revitalization project, supported by an $11.4 million EPA Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grant awarded to The Sustainability Institute in January 2025.
This historic amount of investment supports the infrastructure development of 3 acres of land for affordable housing, the design and construction of 11 affordable housing units, the repairing and weatherizing of 50 existing homes in the community, as well as innovative workforce development efforts — all while reconnecting a neighborhood that was once divided by Exit 218.
However, the federal grant for this project has been unexpectedly frozen, reinstated, and now terminated by the current administration. This action, which The Sustainability Institute (the nonprofit leading the project) has challenged with a lawsuit, threatens to derail years of planning and hard work.
The Path to Restoration: Reclaiming Union Heights
The effort to reconnect the Union Heights community is a multi-year mission to "right the wrongs" and reclaim land once divided by Interstate 26. We are working to restore the physical and social fabric of this historic neighborhood through a combination of community advocacy and on-the-ground revitalization.
Explore the Project’s Critical Components and Assets
Grant Termination &
Pending Litigation
Follow Our Ongoing Lawsuit
Sustainability Institute v. Trump
Take Action
Demand Accountability
Download our Community Action Toolkit
and Make Your Voice Heard
Emergency
Capital Campaign
Help Us Bridge the Funding Gap
and Ensure Critical Service Delivery
Data-Driven Impact: The Neighborhood Mapping Project
In order to identify and prioritize housing repair needs and collect housing data at the community level, we partnered with the Riley Center for Livable Communities at the College of Charleston to develop a professional survey that has been administered in the Union Heights community for over 12- months. Data has been collected and analyzed on more than 55 single-family, owner-occupied homes – shown on this map in red –and these homes are currently being inspected, energy audited, and tested.
ⓘ symbol for map legend.