Project Highlights
EJP is Successful Again in Winning HOPE VI Grants for 2 Authorities
Two of the six 2008 HOPE VI grant awards announced by HUD were led by EJP. Both grantees each received $20 million grants for their first HOPE VI revitalization efforts. The Housing Authority of the City of Texarkana, TX (HATT), with Carleton Development as its partner, will rebuild the Rosehill neighborhood with 529 mixed-income rental units to be developed on three existing public housing sites along with 25 affordable homeownership units to be constructed in the immediate neighborhood. The Bremerton Housing Authority (BHA), working with Marathon Development, will redevelop Westpark with 290 mixed-income rental units, 30 affordable homeownership and 487 market rate homeownership units. A significant commercial center will also be constructed on-site. In addition, 37 units in an existing 148 unit market rate apartment building in Bremerton will be converted to public housing units.
2007 HOPE VI Application Winners!
EJP partners led two successful 2007 HOPE VI grant applications resulting in awards of $20 million each to the Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO) and the Boston Housing Authority (BHA). Working with McCormack Baron Salazar, the HANO C. J. Peete redevelopment calls for 460 mixed-income rental units on the former site along with 50 affordable for-sale units built there and in the immediate neighborhood; HANO will also undertake a substantial outreach effort to former residents displaced by earlier demolition and Hurricane Katrina. BHA’s plan for Washington Beech includes replacing 266 outdated units with 334 affordable housing opportunities on-site and throughout the city of Boston.
Survey Launched To Assess EBDI Resident Relocation Program
EJP partner Rhae Parkes currently directs a team in the design, implementation and analysis of a post-relocation outcomes survey looking at 396 families displaced by the large-scale revitalization of the East Baltimore neighborhood north of Johns Hopkins Medical campus. The survey results will be used to answer key research questions about the impact of the East Baltimore Development Inc. (EBDI) initiative on the lives of community residents. The EJP-led team is using a number of data collection tools to assess over time the success of the East Baltimore redevelopment. The survey is commissioned by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and EJP is collaborating with Abt Associates on this effort.
Coastal Family Health Center Recover from Hurricane
EJP assisted the Coastal Family Health Center of Biloxi, Mississippi in its efforts to rebuild five facilities substantially damaged by Hurricane Katrina. With a $7.8 million federal block grant, EJP partner Scott Jepsen coordinated the planning, reconstruction, and certification activities that restored much needed health care to more than 30,000 people with significant health problems. In less than two years, all clinics are back in operation at full capacity, and carrying on the mission of improving the health of low income families and individuals.
Applying HOPE VI Lessons to FEMA’s Alternative Housing Pilot Program
At a recent conference in Biloxi, MS, EJP partners Gayle Epp and Scott Jepsen shared insights on the ways HOPE VI program experiences could inform and shape the Alternative Housing Pilot Program (AHPP) of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). AHPP wants to identify, develop and evaluate alternative forms of short and intermediate-term FEMA housing to use during catastrophic disasters. EJP offered lessons-learned regarding how to approach partnerships with local communities, the delivery of supportive services for impacted households, and ways to ensure the long-term sustainability of emergency housing options and alternatives after disaster response.
Assisting HACLV to Self-Develop Public Housing
EJP partner Scott Jepsen guided the Housing Authority of the City of Las Vegas (HACLV) through its development of the Ernie Cragin Terrace site. Technical assistance included preparation of Replacement Housing Factor (RHF) plans for HUD approval, submission of a successful 9% tax credit application, and training of HACLV staff on the mixed-finance development process. In addition, he assisted during the financial negotiations with HUD and investors, and helped the development access operating subsidy funds as the new units became available.
