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| City to Unveil Plan to End Homelessness, New Housing Projects Dec 20 Commissioner Erik Sten will announce Portland's 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness and several new housing projects aimed to house people who have been chronically homeless on December 20 at Central City Concern's new Rose Quarter Housing Project. The housing projects will be partially financed with $9 million of the $11 million in funding that Affordable Housing NOW! won in the 2004-05 City budget. “It is wonderful to see the City prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable members of our community,” said Clyde Doctor of the City Club of Portland. “The opportunity to succeed in life is tied to having a stable home. If we want success for Portland as a whole, its only fair that everyone has a safe, decent place to live.” The 10 Year Plan uses a “housing first” approach to provide stable homes for people who often because of a disability or other housing barrier have been living on the streets for years. The “housing first” approach, demonstrated successfully in cities through out the country, provides stable housing as a first step to moving off the street gives people the security to address other issues that may have originally contributed to becoming homeless. Community members are welcome to join the celebration December 20. The ceremony begins at 10:00 and will be followed by a reception. The address of the Rose Quarter Housing Project is 10 NE Weidler. Human Solutions to Celebrate Opening of Community Center Wed, Dec 8 Human Solutions, Inc. will celebrate the completion of the remodel and addition of a new Community Center at The Pines Apartments in Gresham by throwing a party for residents and the community on Wednesday, December 8th, 2004 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. The Pines Apartments is located in Rockwood, at 140 SE 188th Street. Human Solutions worked with Bankey Architects to completely redesign and transform the old Community Center into a family-friendly space. The new Community Center is double the square feet of the old center, is ADA accessible, and has space for a computer learning center as well as community meetings. Families living at The Pines will now have a space for the Summer Lunch Program, after-school activities and community celebrations. The first celebration will be the official opening of the Community Center on December 8th. All are invited. Questions? Contact Vynette Arnell at (503) 988-5200, x 26574 Hacienda Recognized as 2004 Bank of America Neighborhood Builder Hacienda CDC has been selected as a 2004 Neighborhood Builder award under Bank of America Charitable Foundation's Neighborhood Excellence Initiative. As an award recipient, Hacienda will receive $200,000 to continue their successful programs. “The housing Hacienda builds gives people an opportunity to build better lives,” said Pietro Ferrari, Hacienda's new Executive Director. “The $200,000 award to Hacienda comes at a crucial time in the organization's history as we strive to build upon the organization's strong development track record in housing Oregon's low income Latinos and providing economic and self-improvement opportunities to our resident community.” Hacienda will use this award to bolster its in-house capacity to hire and retain a team of qualified and experienced professionals in the affordable housing development, asset management and resident-based youth and safety programs. Two Portland nonprofit organizations were selected this year under this program from a pool of 78 applicants. The other grantee is Open Meadow Alternative Schools. In addition to grant funds, the award provides executive leadership training for two employees of the organization. “We are very grateful to Bank of America for awarding Hacienda Community Development Corporation this year's Neighborhood Builder award which allows us to continue to create opportunity for families,” said Ferrari. Regional Blue Ribbon Committee to Consider Final Report Dec 17 NAHRO Statement on FY 2005 HUD Appropriations: Troubling Step Backwards Step Backward Shows Need to Refocus our Nation's Priorities on Housing and Community Development The following is a statement of James Inglis, president of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) on funding for housing and community development programs included in the FY 2005 Omnibus Appropriations bill: The omnibus appropriations bill represents an unfortunate and troubling step backward for our nation's affordable housing and community development efforts. Low funding levels for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will hurt families across the United States who need affordable homes. The bill will thwart local attempts to maintain strong and thriving communities. I am disappointed that many members of Congress did not responsibly review key provisions of the bill that will affect NAHRO's members, who work to provide affordable housing and build strong communities. Many important programs administered by our members have been significantly reduced, in some cases by more than 5 percent compared with last year. Funding for the homeless and those living with AIDS was cut by 1.5 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively. Funding to maintain vital public housing resources was reduced by 5 percent. Funding for the HOPE VI program, which has successfully transformed troubled public housing in favor of thriving mixed income communities, was reduced below 2004 levels. This, however, is an improvement over the administration's proposed budget, which eliminated the program completely. Other popular and successful programs, like CDBG and HOME, fared no better in this bill. Funding for these programs, which have enjoyed enormous bipartisan support, also was reduced substantially. Even the American Dream Downpayment Initiative, designed to advance the president's homeownership agenda, was reduced by 43 percent over FY 2004 levels. This will eliminate entitlement funding for 60 communities that were funded in 2004. We appreciate that, in this difficult year, funding for the Housing Choice Voucher program was increased by 5 percent over FY 2004 levels. However, this is only sufficient to fund the vouchers in place in 2004 and narrowly exceeds the rate of inflation. We supported Senate efforts to improve the FY2004 renewal policy, however, Congress chose to keep Section 8 on a perilous course by continuing a policy that renews current housing choice vouchers on a budget basis rather than the more accurate and market-driven approach of renewing vouchers on a local, actual-cost basis. The budget-based approach was first introduced in April of this year and caused business disruptions for many local housing agencies and the residents they serve. Continuation of this policy will put these families at risk again in the year ahead. Agencies may be forced to make painful choices, including possibly terminating families from the program, because they lack the necessary funds to continue helping those the program currently serves. Unfortunately, Congress decided to forgo our nation's concerns about the critical need to sustain funding levels for housing and community development activities to a degree that corresponds with local documented needs. Housing and community development activities sustain and enhance a productive and vibrant economy, create jobs and encourage wealth building in addition to meeting an unarguable need to support families and communities in need. Before the next Congress takes office, NAHRO members will redouble their efforts to educate and inform decision makers on the likely impact HR 4818 will have on the families and communities across the nation. We look forward to working with the new Congress and hope its members understand the dire need for theses services in the United States. We are prepared to work with Congress to ensure that the families and communities we serve are not left behind in the challenging days that lie ahead. We look to the new Congress and the administration to debate openly and honestly the future of our nation's affordable housing. Nothing less will adequately serve our constituents. Press Contact: Liz Hennessy, 202-289-3500 ext. 280 or lhennessy@nahro.org To read a related article outlining the FY 2005 HUD appropriations, click here: http://www.cdnportland.org/CDN_news_112304.html#HUD_Cut_8percent Nine City Study Shows Supportive Housing Saves Money A study released by The Partnership to End Long-Term Homelessness shows that in nine major cities, it costs significantly less to provide a day in supportive housing than a day in a shelter, jail or psychiatric hospital. To read a copy of the study, click here: (CSH_Lewin pdf) Brookings Institution Study Indicates Economic Segregation Growing in U.S. Economic Segregation - "Pulling Apart," a new Brookings Institution analysis of census data, reports that economic segregation is increasing in cities and suburbs alike. An analysis of census income data for cities and suburbs in the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas between 1980 and 2000 shows that: * The overall per capita income gap between central cities and suburbs remained unchanged between 1990 and 2000, in stark contrast to the widening gaps in the previous two decades. However, the city and suburban income gaps in the Northeast and Midwest are still wide and growing while smaller gaps in the South and West are narrowing. * The proportion of poor and affluent suburbs (to middle-income suburbs) increased rapidly in the 1980s but leveled off during the 1990s. As a result, only just over 60 percent of suburban residents live in middle-income suburbs today versus nearly 75 percent 20 years ago. * The gap between the richest and poorest suburbs increased rapidly during the 1980s and more slowly in the 1990s, although patterns of inequality vary widely across the country. Generally, the suburban income gaps are largest in the Sun Belt metro areas such as Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Houston. In Northeastern metropolitan areas such as Buffalo, Rochester, and Hartford, per capita incomes between suburbs are more similar. * Most of the growth in the number of poor and affluent places occurred because middle-income places became poorer or more affluent. An important exception is that the growth in poor places in the 1990s occurred entirely in counties annexed by metropolitan areas. Using fixed 1990 boundaries for metropolitan areas, the number of poor places actually declined in the 1990s. Even though the prosperous 1990s improved the per capita incomes of cities and suburbs, the decade did not reverse or eliminate the income inequalities across locales that emerged during the past three decades. To find out more and read the whole report, go to: http://www.brook.edu/metro/pubs/20041018_econsegregation.htm Eradicating Poverty Through Profit Conference Dec 12-14 in San Francisco |
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