Near the intersection of Ashely Phosphate Road and I-26 in North Charleston, S.C., behind an IHOP and a Cracker Barrel, sits a Comfort Inn & Suites — or that's what it used to be. Built in 2017, it's not a particularly old hotel, but in 2024, the people who owned it decided they didn't want it anymore and put it on the market. The New York-based nonprofit Tunnels to Towers stepped in and purchased it for $11.6 million.
Tunnels to Towers formed in 2001 as a tribute to New York Fire Department (NYFD) firefighter Stephen Siller, who was killed in the September 11 terror attacks. For the last two and a half decades, it's worked to help ensure veterans, first responders, and their families do not end up homeless and receive the support they may need to overcome catastrophic events.
That's exactly what it planned to do with this hotel, and after over a year of renovations, it will hold a grand opening later this month. The building was converted into apartments for veterans who are at risk for homelessness and need affordable long-term housing. It will offer 90-plus homes — hotel rooms were converted by adding kitchenettes and updated living spaces — with a monthly fee of $1,000 or no more than 30% of the person's income. That money goes to rent, utilities, on-site supportive services, and transportation to and from Veterans Administration offices. A few veterans already call the place home.
According to the Charleston Post & Courier, some of the "property's biggest transformation happened on the first floor."
What was once a hotel lobby, as well as meeting rooms, lounge areas, pool and guest rooms, has been reimagined as a community hub featuring a fitness center, multipurpose room, free clothing closet, and offices where veterans can connect with case managers, behavioral health specialists, housing coordinators, employment counselors and other support services.
The hotel conversion is not the first of its kind, though it is the first one in South Carolina. Tunnels to Towers began this project in 2024, with a goal of opening 100 such veterans' villages across the United States, which should provide about 12,000 affordable housing units.
The first one opened in Houston in 2024. The organization converted a 161-room hotel into a 131-unit apartment complex. Another followed in Atlanta. It offers behavioral health, PTSD, and addiction support. According to the Post & Courier, about a dozen other sites are currently in the midst of a transformation, including hotels in Jacksonville, Fla., and Birmingham, Ala.
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The organization also operates the Let Us Do Good Village in Land 'O Lakes, Fla. According to its website, it's a "community of mortgage-free homes specifically built with the unique needs of our Fallen First Responder Families, Gold Star Families, and Smart Home recipients in mind, while lifting the financial burden of a mortgage off their shoulders. The Foundation aims to create not just a group of homes, but an interconnected community of families who can relate to one another through their sacrifices and resilience. Residents will know inherently that they have a network of supporters to lean on in times of struggle, and that they will never be alone."
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