Delmar-Lema Village
In 1998 Memphis Heritage began the renovation of Delmar-Lema
Village consisting of ten single-shotgun and seven double shotgun
houses. The front ten houses facing Delmar Street date stylistically
to 1895 and were patterned after the houses in New Orleans' Uptown
area. The rear houses date to the 1920's. These houses represent
a rapidly diminishing number of shotguns built in the late nineteenth
and early twentieth centuries in Memphis. The "shotgun" house was so-named
because the traditional layout of the house allows shotgun pellets fired
through the front door to pass all the way through the house without
hitting any barriers. They are usually one room wide and one or two rooms
deep. The style gained popularity in New Orleans and quickly spread
throughout the South.
This project is the result of a unique partnership which incorporates
for-profit, non-profit (private sector) and public sector organizations.Memphis
Heritage Inc. and Project Agape, Inc. are the general partners.
Project Agape's mission includes providing accessible, affordable health
care and social services for senior citizens. Federal and state funds
are provided for the project through the city's Division of Housing
and Community Development.
In addition, First Tennessee Housing Corporation is a limited
partner in the project, and Flintco Constructive Solutions, a minority-owned
firm, acted as the project's general contractor. Flintco was also the
contractor for the Love Cottages
renovation, located at 7th and Saffarans in north downtown. Capital
Development of Memphis is responsible for the project's overall coordination,
successful development and documentation. Columbus Missionary Baptist
Church (which created Agape) serves as a link to the neighborhood,
and Tesco markets and leases the houses to new residents.