The Ali Legacy House is a residential property, named in honor of the late Ismail Ali. Ismail is the original inspiration behind the Coalition’s mentoring group, The Man to Man Project. This space will be used to house four Ground Up apprentices. By providing affordable housing, we will accelerate opportunities for the deployment of young people poised to take their future and careers by storm. The residential property will be in close proximity to the future Legacy Center, creating an additional layer of support for our apprenticeship program.

In phase one, (1) commercial building and (1) residential property will be purchased and renovated for the purposes of lodging, employment, and holistic development. The commercial space will be named the Black Legacy Advancement Center, designed as a mixed-use facility for both business and living. The BLAC Center will function as “Ground Zero” for the project’s central efforts in the community. Lodging for select apprentices will be provided, where they will have the dual opportunity to live and learn independently on site while working responsibly. Through rigorous programming and formal work assigned during their time with the Ground UP Project, these youth and young adults will be prepared to succeed in their communities as strong contributing members of society and developed entrepreneurs.

Four residential apartments will be renovated on the second level of the Legacy Center facility. We will operate a barber shop in the first commercial space. In the second space, we will operate a take-away food shop and catering service, led by a black-American chef-restaurateur. A full-service kitchen will be secured to make this space functional. One adult staff member will live in the residential space of the facility, serving as the residential advisor to the apprentices living on site.

Apprentices will be trained and employed in the Legacy Center’s barber shop and kitchen. Living accommodations will be offered at a reduced rate. The purpose of this discounted rate of rent is to empower the apprentice to aggressively save a down payment to invest back into their own business and/or property. The financial requirement will be to save forty percent of their monthly earnings in order to launch their entrepreneurial career. During this two-year period, apprentices living in the facility will receive training in business management, business planning, basic engineering, leadership development, and life skills. The wrap around curriculum and services will help to ensure that participants are equipped with the necessary knowledge to be successful in their own long-term business venture when graduating the Ground Up Project’s apprenticeship.

The residential space above the businesses will house (4) studio apartments, (2) bathrooms, as well as laundry facilities. The commercial property sits on a total of four lots. In the first phase, a portion of the lots will be converted into parking and a garden space producing fresh produce for the restaurant. In a second phase of development, additional apartment units will be built on the additional three lots.