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The Kelsey Ayer Station is the almost two-year-old first site for the Kelsey, a national nonprofit that builds and advocates for affordable and accessible housing for people with disabilities.

Currently, there is a waiting list to get an apartment there. At the nonprofit’s newest building in San Francisco, which celebrated its grand opening last fall, more than 7,000 people applied for 112 apartments. Next year, the Kelsey will open a new building in Birmingham, Ala., with other sites slated for the future.

The needs of disabled people are not often prioritized in conversations around solving the country’s affordable housing crisis. According to nonpartisan group, the National League of Cities, 26 percent of people have a disability, yet it’s estimated that less than 6 percent of the national housing supply is made to be accessible.

The Kelsey aims to demonstrate that even in one of the nation’s most expensive markets, it’s possible to build affordable housing with support services. And it can be replicated.

“Our approach from the beginning was addressing what we define as the overlooked and unmet housing needs of people with disabilities,” said Micaela Connery, the Kelsey’s chief executive. She founded the company alongside her cousin, Kelsey Flynn O’Connor, who lived with multiple disabilities and struggled to find accessible housing in adulthood. (Ms. O’Connor died in 2018.)

Exhibiting the charm of a midsize boutique hotel, the Kelsey Ayer Station is situated in San Jose’s First Street Urban Village corridor, next to the light rail line and close to major bus routes, shops, and cultural hubs like the city’s art museum and the popular San Pedro Square food market.

“There’s not an ounce of it feeling institutional or sterile, which is sometimes both the reality and the perception of things that anchor on access,” explained Ms. Connery.

Indoors, the airy entrance melds into common areas designed for working and gathering. Colorful artworks by disabled artists adorn the walls. Everywhere, color-coded symbols promote wayfinding around the building.

Apartments feature wide doorways, open floor plans, low-to-the-ground storage, and dimmable lighting. Several units offer bathrooms with roll-in showers.

Darcy McCann, 46, is a full-time graduate student finishing a post-bachelor’s program in clinical psychology. Diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 2, she became a resident of the Kelsey in the summer of 2024 after applying through the open lottery system.

Before that, she was living in accessible housing that lacked community. But now, meeting up with others to play board games or to paint quells feelings of isolation. “Living here provides a great opportunity to meet and talk with others in a supportive space,” she said.

Ms. McCann recalls how past living arrangements prevented simple tasks like washing her hands at the kitchen sink because counters couldn’t accommodate the size of her powered wheelchair. Here, access is expected.

Another resident, Barry Gee, 40, said the Kelsey community provides a sense of security that he didn’t have in past housing, noting he feels safe “because I know and trust my neighbors.” The ability to walk to nearby grocery stores and the community center are ancillary benefits, along with proximity to the light rail for the occasional trips Mr. Gee makes to the Great America amusement park in nearby Santa Clara.

One quarter of the Kelsey’s apartments are reserved for people with disabilities, and units are available to residents with and without disabilities across all income levels. Apartment rents range from $578 to $2,899, and some residents with vouchers may pay even less. Leases are written in clear, plain language without the typical legalese.

The project came together through philanthropic, private, and public partners, including support from the city of San Jose. The $75 million development budget allowed a cost of about $650,000 per unit. “Our project is consistent with and in some cases below typical affordable housing costs in the Bay Area,” said Ms. Connery, noting that developers often equate accessibility with high building costs.

The Kelsey’s ethos is steered by a compendium of “inclusive design standards” which were created by people with and without disabilities, and with members of the Inclusive Design Council and Mikiten Architecture. It features more than 300 elements meant to serve people across access needs, and it covers housing design and operations strategies along with leasing and resident services. Among the standards: ample common spaces with flexible seating, play areas for service and companion pets, and the on-site inclusion concierge.

“Real inclusion only works when everyone understands the ‘why,’ not just the requirements,” said Ms. Connery.

Representative Sam Liccardo says the city of San Jose is changed by the achievements of the Kelsey Ayer Station. “Hundreds of our San Jose neighbors gained a home, and our nation gained a model for inclusive housing.”

For Mr. Micetich, the inclusion concierge, no two days are the same. In the morning, he might introduce a resident to resources for job training or financial planning. By the afternoon, he could be finalizing details for a pizza and art night to bring residents together. “It’s not like we’re just providing the housing. We’re trying to truly make a community.”

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Jason Henry for The New York Times

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