Resources for Community Development’s Post

Can #AffordableHousing truly knit a community back together? How often do we witness transformative developments that genuinely improve lives? Recently, the James Lewis Jr. Apartments were featured in The Post and Courier (written by Ali Rockett), highlighting the significant impact the community has on the lives of residents and the community on Charleston's East Side. Esther Davis, a resident of the complex, shared her journey from a challenging past to finding peace (and a fresh start) in her new home in Charleston. Her story bears witness to the development’s #CommunityImpact, which provides a sense of ownership and pride. The building, which houses 64 affordable units for those earning 60 percent or below of the Area Median Income, filled up within 30 days of opening — a clear indicator of the critical need for such housing. The city's contribution of $7 million through Affordable Housing and the strategic lease of land at $1 per year underscore a commitment to affordable housing that ensures long-term community benefits. The property's design to revert ownership back to the city after 60 years guarantees that it will remain an affordable haven perpetually. This development, which took nearly 14 years from planning to completion, is not just about building homes but about restoring a fragmented community. The vision of leaders like Councilman James Lewis, Jr., who championed affordable housing to "knit back together" the East Side, is now a living reality. Let's celebrate these milestones in affordable housing and continue to support initiatives that offer more than just a roof but a pathway to a better life. See the link to the article in the comments below.

Someone in the comments stated the Villa at Titusville is already beginning to show signs of decay and destruction. Birmingham Housing Authority just like City of Birmingham provides housing for the least likely to excel beyond government dependency to becoming productive and sustainable citizens. Both BHA and the City of Birmingham the two entities support young women with dependent children instead of citizens who are working towards earning a higher education, entrepreneurs, and middle age to older people. The Birmingham Housing Authority and the City of Birmingham place the wrong type of people in new housing, and the citizens who take pride and care of their housing and homes are displaced and put on the back of waiting lists for housing and emergency rental assistance. Therefore, the new new communities built and in the blueprint phase will in five to ten years decay and begin to look like yesterday’s government housing projects. In retrospect, what do I know about housing, placement and displacement? https://lnkd.in/eFHnjPkc

Last week at the Kentucky Affordable Housing Conference, we had the privilege of diving into the latest trends in affordable housing. From the speakers to the seminars, we heard about the importance of recognizing the issue of affordability and the many ways in which we, as a community, can impact it. #AffordableHousing #KAHC #WeberGroup #GetInvolved We invite you to join the discussion of this pertinent topic. Share your thoughts on how we can create sustainable solutions to the affordable housing crisis. #ThinkBeyond #InnovativeSolutions #MakingAChange https://lnkd.in/eSJukfGr

We have secured reserved matters approval for the third phase of Moss Nook in St Helens on behalf of Harworth Group plc, which will deliver 295 new homes on a 19.5-acre plot of brownfield land.   Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/edvt2hw7   We have provided expert Planning and Sustainability services to advance the residential-led, mixed-use development, with our Planning team having now facilitated the successful approval of all three current phases across the 95-acre development site.   Aligned with an illustrative masterplan to deliver 900 dwellings in total, the third phase represents a significant contribution to St Helens Borough Council’s deliverable housing supply, reusing redundant brownfield land to create a high-quality environment which respects the character of the area, plus diversifies the tenure mix of housing stock in St Helens.   #MossNook #StHelens #Planning #Sustainability

As we rush to rebuild Lahaina, let's think about affordable housing that takes care of the people living in these homes and our planet. Over 50 registered Living Building Challenge affordable housing projects registered in over 25 states. How come we don't have any in Hawaii? Do low-income communities in Maui not deserve a safe and healthy home to live in? Who is setting the bar for Hawaii's affordable housing? #LivingBuildingChallenge #RegenerativeDesign https://lnkd.in/gVUyanBk

In the article below, Lee Patke, Executive Director of Greccio Housing, shares GPR's journey of the Bentley Commons Development- from a dream to reality. Affordable housing isn't just about shelter; it's about preserving our community's vitality. As Erika Tunson, principal of Monterey Elementary, rightly points out, it's an investment in our future, ensuring teachers and families in Southeast #ColoradoSprings can thrive without the burden of high housing costs. Read the full article here➡https://lnkd.in/dqj4BM-g

The 29th post in my "32 days of Case Studies in Retrofitting Suburbia" project. Only 3 more to go! Case Study II.29: Wyandanch Rising, Town of Babylon, NY How does a retrofitting project get started in an economically distressed community? The story of #WyandanchRising, a multifaceted suburban renewal project in a small, long-overlooked, underinvested hamlet in Suffolk County on Long Island, provides an instructive case study. The revitalization of the hamlet, whose residents are predominately Black and Hispanic, demonstrates the important role of new "chiefs" to champion on behalf of local voices. The effort began in 2000, when Wyandanch was identified by the Suffolk County Planning Commission as the most economically distressed place in the county. Two decades later, the hamlet can boast a rebuilt boulevard and extension to the nearest sanitary sewer district two miles away, an impressive new rail station and new commuter parking structure, and, most significantly, new apartment buildings with hundreds of deeply affordable units framing a public one-acre green plaza, in place of surface parking lots, all within a short walk of the station. By 2016, the project was reported to have leveraged $1.74 million in state #brownfields planning grants to over $131 million in public and private financing, an astonishing rate of return on investment of 75 to 1, with the potential for millions more. A significant part of the story is the ongoing effort to gain, and keep, the trust of local residents, who harbored entirely reasonable fears of displacement. At the beginning, proponents met with local clergy from 25 churches and other school and civic leaders over many months of regular meetings to help bring over 600 residents out for a five-day visioning #charrette in June 2003. Without this initial investment in people, it’s unlikely the rest would have followed. Contributors: Town of Babylon - Government; The Albanese Organization; AKRF, OLIN Studio; Jeff Speck; Sustainable Long Island; Torti Gallas + Partners; VHB; BHC Architects; Keller Sandgren Architects; Merrill, Pastor and Colgan Architects; and others. Image: Town of Babylon’s Wyandanch Rising webpage. #RetrofittingSuburbia #urbandesign #urbandevelopment #regreening #reinhabitation #LeverageSocialCapitalforEquity #ImprovePublicHealth #AddWaterandEnergyResilience ULI Australia Suburban Futures Ellen Dunham-Jones Mike Day of Hatch

It seems housing is on every community’s mind these days. As more communities connect the link between housing and workforce development, economic expansion, and societal health, we’ve seen more and more requests for housing study proposals. Camoin Associates has completed over 30 recent housing needs assessments in 10 different states, and we can generate your housing needs and opportunities, and recommend solutions to help you meet your community’s housing goals. #housing #workforce #expansion  

On Friday I attended the Sunshine Coast Business Council’s CEO Lunch. The topic was, “Regional Housing strategies to accommodate growing population and address homelessness.” Jen Williams, Queensland Executive Director for Property Council of Australia Queensland presented and moderated a panel with Emma Thomas, Sunshine Coast CEO and Larry Sengstock, Acting Noosa CEO. Some critical takeaways: Sunshine Coast Median House prices are the fourth highest in the state, just below a million dollars and our social and affordable housing is one of the lowest percentages in the state. The only way we will be able to accommodate the continued migration will be to look at other types of housing than single detached. This will need to include more three to five level buildings and will likely include more mixed use designs. The draft Shaping SEQ 2023 is pretty clear about this as well. Thanks to the Business Council, the Property Council and to Sunshine Coast and Noosa Councils for continuing to provide information. #property #SunshineCoast #Converstaionsinconstruction

Make your dream #repositioning project a reality! Take a look at the video below and give us a call to schedule a brainstorming session with the LCS Development team today. #Gettingtheprojectdone #Experienceiseverything