The former Allegany High School site in Cumberland, Maryland, is about to become a neighborhood.

Allegany County announced September 18 that it had completed a land-development agreement with D.R. Horton for Village Crossing at Campobello, a 65-home project on the former school property. The county expects site work to resume by the end of September, with the first lot closing potentially taking place in October.

The project is more than another housing announcement. It is a test of whether a small city can use new construction to attract and retain residents while addressing the older, less visible problems that shape daily life: vacant homes, poverty, limited housing options and a shrinking population.

A long-empty site is finally moving

Village Crossing is planned to include at least 44 attached homes and 21 detached homes. Estimated prices range from approximately $180,000 to below $300,000, depending on the final mix of homes.

The county describes the development as market-rate housing rather than subsidized affordable housing. That distinction matters. A home may cost less than new construction in a wealthier market and still remain beyond the reach of residents with low incomes, unstable housing or difficulty qualifying for a conventional mortgage.

Cumberland’s median household income was $48,162 during the 2020–24 period, while the median value of owner-occupied homes was $123,200. The city’s poverty rate was 25.1 percent, according to Census Bureau figures. Those numbers suggest the project could serve some working households, but they do not show that it will reach residents with the fewest housing options.

The former high school property has been vacant since the school was demolished in 2022. County officials selected D.R. Horton in 2023, and the project has moved through site planning, infrastructure work and revisions to the development agreement. The final agreement allows the builder to acquire the lots in six groups, beginning with an anticipated closing on 11 lots.

For a community that has waited several years for construction to begin, the signed agreement is a meaningful change. It is not, however, the same as 65 completed homes.

New construction does not erase old housing problems

Cumberland’s housing challenge is not simply a shortage of buildings.

The city’s 2025 community-development plan reported that 87.4 percent of occupied housing units were built before 1979 and 65 percent were built before 1959. The plan counted 10,355 housing units in 2023, including 1,976 vacant units.

Vacancy alone does not establish that housing is habitable, affordable or located where residents need it. Some homes may require extensive repairs. Others may be unsuitable for families, inaccessible to older adults or people with disabilities, or unavailable at prices local residents can afford.

That is the tension at the center of Cumberland’s development strategy. New homes can offer modern plumbing, insulation, accessibility features and lower maintenance demands. They can also signal that the city remains open to investment.

But new construction does not automatically repair older housing, reduce homelessness, make rents affordable or create jobs. A city can have vacant houses and still lack usable housing.

The public investment needs a public accounting

Allegany County estimates that the completed development could have an assessed value of approximately $14.51 million. Based on current tax rates, the project could generate an estimated $153,733 annually for Cumberland and $119,678 for Allegany County. The county has emphasized that actual assessments, tax revenue, home prices and the final housing mix will depend on future conditions and approvals.

Those projections are important, but they are the beginning of the accounting rather than the end.

The county and city have already invested in site preparation and infrastructure, including work on Sedgwick Street and stormwater facilities. Officials are betting that future property value, tax revenue and economic activity will justify those upfront costs and encourage additional residential development.

That may prove to be a reasonable investment. It is not risk-free.

The project’s performance should eventually be measured against more than its completion. Officials and residents will need to know whether the neighborhood generates the projected tax base, whether public infrastructure costs remain within expectations, whether homes sell at the anticipated prices and whether the development connects residents to nearby streets, businesses, employment and transportation.

A housing project can be completed and still underperform as an economic-development strategy.

Who can afford to live there?

The planned price range places Village Crossing between two common housing arguments. Supporters can reasonably say that new homes below $300,000 may offer a more attainable path to ownership than new construction in many Maryland markets. Skeptics can reasonably point out that price is only one part of affordability.

Buyers also need a down payment, mortgage approval, insurance, taxes and the ability to maintain the property. Interest rates and household debt can make a home difficult to afford even when the sale price appears moderate.

Allegany County’s housing documents describe significant needs, including older homes requiring extensive maintenance, housing instability, limited shelter capacity and long waiting lists. That means Cumberland needs several housing strategies at the same time:

  • new homes for buyers who can qualify;
  • repairs and preservation for existing homeowners;
  • safe and affordable rental housing;
  • assistance for residents facing displacement;
  • accessible homes for older adults and people with disabilities; and
  • stronger connections between housing, employment and transportation.

Village Crossing can contribute to one part of that list. It cannot substitute for all of them.

Housing is a platform, not an economic strategy by itself

Cumberland’s population was estimated at 18,799 in July 2025, down 1.5 percent from the 2020 census base and substantially below its 2010 population. Nearly a quarter of residents were 65 or older.

The county has described the development as an opportunity to expand housing options and support future growth. That raises a question officials should answer directly: Is the project intended primarily for current residents, older adults seeking newer homes, workers moving into the area, families priced out of larger Maryland markets—or some combination of those groups?

The answer will shape how the project should be evaluated.

If the homes sell mainly to people relocating from elsewhere, Village Crossing could help stabilize the population but do little for residents unable to afford the new houses. If sales are slow, the project may produce less tax revenue and neighborhood activity than projected. If the homes attract residents without corresponding employment growth, Cumberland may gain population without gaining the economic base officials hope to build.

Housing is not an economic strategy by itself. It is the platform on which an economic strategy either works or fails.

The next test is construction

County and city staff plan to meet with D.R. Horton construction superintendents around October 1. The first lot closing could take place later in October if closing conditions are met. The agreement gives the builder up to nine months after permit issuance for substantial completion of an individual home, subject to extensions and defined delays.

The immediate questions are practical:

  • Will the initial lots close on schedule?
  • When will building permits be issued?
  • When will the first homes be completed?
  • How quickly will the homes sell?
  • What will buyers actually pay?
  • Will the attached and detached housing mix change?
  • Will public infrastructure costs remain within projections?

The larger question will come later. Cumberland will need to determine whether Village Crossing becomes a functioning neighborhood connected to the rest of the city—or an isolated pocket of new homes that produces less local opportunity than promised.

The former high school site is no longer waiting for a future. Now Cumberland has to show what kind of future the new neighborhood is meant to create.

Sources: Allegany County; Forever Cumberland; U.S. Census Bureau; City of Cumberland community-development plan.