2000 Best Practice AwardsProgram and Geographical Winners: Arizona
Best Practice: Health Care for the Homeless Program
Taking Health Care to those in Need
Phoenix.
The Health Care for the Homeless Program delivers health care to homeless
individuals in Maricopa County through an interdisciplinary approach that
combines aggressive street outreach with integrated systems of primary care,
dental, vision, mental health and substance abuse services, case management
and client advocacy. Program outreach workers go into the streets, shelters,
desert camps, river bottoms, and under bridges to offer homeless persons
a continuum of health careboth directly and through referrals. This
roaming one-stop shop approach overcomes barriers such as transportation
and client inability to make repeat visits to care providers. The program
assisted 13,000 homeless individuals in 1999, offering early intervention
with less costly care. Program services helped reduce transmission of communicable
diseases and limited use of hospital emergency rooms for primary care needs.
The program partners with shelters and public and private-sector organizations
for services and funding.
Contact: Annette Stein, Phone: (602) 258-2122
Ext. 232
Tracking Number: 1442
Winning Category: Program (Community Planning and Development)
Best Practice: Lead Education and Outreach
Keeping Hispanic Communities Safe from
Lead
Phoenix.
To reach Hispanic communities with high risk of lead poisoning, the Phoenix
Neighborhood Services Department relies on creative educational games to
teach families about effective ways to prevent lead poisoning in children.
They include a game based on a Mexican game called La Loteria, developed
for low literacy populations, and Lead Bingo, for Spanish and English populations.
The department leveraged HUD and EPA grant funds to support training development,
delivery and outreach. Local government and private organizations provide
in-kind contributions.
Contact: Lara E. Cagle, Phone: (602) 252-7566
Tracking Number: 3270
Winning Category: Program (Office of Lead Hazard Control)
Best Practices: Phoenix Central City South Revitalization
Revitalizing Phoenix through Community
Planning
Phoenix.
The small nonprofit Phoenix Revitalization Corporation and a group of grassroots
leaders leveraged a small budget and limited resources into a major impact
in the city of Phoenix by working with the HUD Community Builder Program
and the Reinventing Neighborhoods Program initiated by Arizona State University.
By partnering with local residents, businesses, nonprofit agencies, federal,
state and local governments, and community leaders, Phoenix Revitalization
published a community plan with recommendations ranging from housing demonstrations
to public/private employment programs. The State of Arizona and private
investors began funding the strategies. Corporation-sponsored neighborhood
study sessions that educated citizens in community issues and honed leadership
skills have generated a land- use map and design guidelines. Phoenix Revitalization
also is working with HUD on a food authority project to create employment
opportunities related to the processing of food and fiber crops grown in
Arizona and Mexico.
Contact: Terry Davis, Phone: (602) 253-6895
Tracking Number: 3020
Winning Category: Geographical and Program (Community Builder)
Best Practice: Phoenix Equal Opportunity Department
(PEOD)
PEOD Creates Video on Fair Housing Practices
Phoenix.
Phoenix Equal Opportunity Department is a participant in the Fair Housing
Assistance Program, authorized through the federal Fair Housing Act. The
Fair Housing Act recognizes state or local governments with fair housing
laws providing rights and remedies that are substantially equivalent to
those under the federal law. The city of Phoenix regularly participates
in outreach activities to citizen groups and professionals in the housing
industry informing them of the rights and responsibilities conferred by
local and federal fair housing laws. To promote outreach and educational
opportunities, PEOD created a 17-minute video, "Be Fair...or Beware!"
The video is designed for consumers and providers, including landlords,
leasing agents, resident managers and other housing-industry professionals.
Two vignettes are featured and they explore how practices that appear legal
may, in fact, be discriminatory.
Contact: Lionel Lyon, Phone: (602) 495-0572
Tracking Number: 2382
Winning Category: Program (Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity)
Best Practice: Agua Para Beber (Drinking Water)
Making Water Safe for Drinking
Tucson.
Agua Para Beber is an EPA-funded project that trains health promotores,
or promoters, to teach residents in the Arizona-Mexico border region how
to chlorinate and store drinking water to combat illnesses spread though
impure water. Funded through a bi-national grant, the effort makes creative
use of existing resources from multiple partners in the public and nonprofit
sectors. A HUD Community Builder Colonias specialist is coordinating the
project, which is implemented by the nonprofit Border Health Foundation,
in collaboration with its partners. Targeting three sites in the United
States and three in Mexico, the project will train 500 low-income Colonias
residents in environmental health education using English and Spanish curriculum.
Contact: Angela Donelson, Phone: (520) 670-6237
Tracking Number: 493
Winning Category: Program (Community Builder)
Best Practice: Tucson-Pima County Fair Housing
Week
Fair Housing Week Focuses on Economic and
Social Justice in Housing
Tucson.
The Tucson-Pima County Fair Housing Week was created in January 2000, when
a subgroup from the City/County Fair Housing Advisory Committee began planning
a week of events focusing on fair housing and economic and social justice.
Twelve events were planned for the week of April 1-8. The week began with
presentations of city and county proclamations and "wall raising"
of housing sponsored by Habitat for Humanity-Tucson. Other events included
public discussions on diversity in neighborhoods, a training class on fair
housing laws and a Fair Housing Awards reception. The week concluded with
a basketball hoops tournament and training program sponsored by the Arizona
All Stars. Approximately 150 adults participated in the weeks events
and 35 youth participated in the basketball event. The Arizona Daily Star
ran a front-page article on one of the Fair Housing Award winners. Legislation
was passed requiring that recordings of property transactions in the state
contain language that reads that any covenants, codes or restrictions based
on race, religion, color, handicap status or national origin are null and
void.
Contact: Anita Fonte, Phone: (520) 670-6237
Ext.240
Tracking Number: 333
Winning Category: Program (Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity)
Best Practice: Tucson Supportive Housing ProgramLa
Casita
Providing Housing for the Young
Tucson.
La Casita is a Supportive Housing Program that relies on a public-private
collaboration to provide transitional housing and employment assistance
to homeless youths and parenting teens. Five public- and private-sector
agencies joined forces to form a Homeless Youth Network to provide educational,
vocational, social, and personal living skills that help youth become self-sufficient.
The Network is developing a shared database system among all agencies that
streamlines the intake process for those in need of service from multiple
agencies. The program triples the amount of transitional housing for youth
in an area offering only three percent of its transitional housing beds
to unaccompanied youth.
Contact: Steve D. Nelson, Phone: (520) 882-5500
Tracking Number: 2431
Winning Category: Program (Community Planning and Development)
Best Practice: United Community Health Center
United Community Health Center Provides
Much Needed Care
Green Valley.
In a medically under-served rural area of Southern Arizona, United Community
Health Center delivers primary health care at three clinics. Its staff of
40 has an active patient base of 5,500. The center works proactively with
school districts, churches and community groups by sending staff into neighborhoods
and schools to raise public health awareness through education campaigns.
Among its local and national partners are the Bureau of Primary Health Care,
Pima County, Arizona Department of Health Services and the United Way Health
Department. The centers creative leveraging of resources helps support
services through effective matching of state and federal funds and large
private grants with small foundation grants.
Contact: Laurie Jurs, Phone: (520) 625-4401
Tracking Number: 311
Winning Category: Geographical
Best Practice: South Tenth Avenue Historic
Preservation Project
Creating Affordable Housing from Historic
Sites
Tucson.
In Tucson, Arizona, the South Tenth Avenue Historic Preservation project
rehabilitated historic homes in Barrio Historico and increased affordable
housing while providing job training opportunities for the homeless and
at-risk high school students. Using HOME program funding, the Primavera
Foundation and homebuyer assistance funds from the Federal Home Loan Bank
of San Francisco, the project provided 10 affordable infill housing units
for low-income residents. The homes represent both pueblo and sonoran design
and include a number of elements intended to blend within the historic neighborhoods.
These elements include the presence of both front and back porches, wooden
doors and double hung wooden windows. Development of the property was undertaken
by Primavera Builders work crews, comprised of the homeless, the working
poor, and at risk high school students. Many of the job trainees who worked
on the project moved on to full-time employment in the construction industry
and earning livable wages. The homes are located near public transportation,
education and job training sites.
Contact: Donald L. Chatfield, Phone: (520)
882-5383
Tracking Number: 1157
Winning Category: Program (Community Planning and Development)
Best Practice: Wilson School Coalition
Wilson School Coalition Improves Student
Achievement
Phoenix.
The Wilson School Coalition was formed in response to deteriorating conditions
in their neighborhood, to provide needed services for families and children
attending the Wilson schools in Phoenix, Ariz. The purpose of the 65-member
public/private partnership is to improve student achievement and revitalize
the community by matching community needs with resources. Coalition members
provide resources for afterschool programs, field trips, reading programs,
student job internships, private high school tuition and ongoing tutoring,
career fairs, training and job placement for parents of Wilson students,
primary medical and dental care, new housing construction and renovation,
neighborhood clean up and crime prevention. Early results include an increase
in student test scores and infusion of funding from outside the community
of more than $13 million for rehabilitation of 300 apartments and construction
of four single-family homes.
Contact: Robin Hanna, Phone: (480) 609-8819
Tracking Number: 1872
Winning Category: Geographical
Best Practice: Rio Puerco Acres
Rio Puerco Acres Revitalizes its Buildings
and its Community
Fort Defiance.
Rio Puerco, and 86 unit family project, has benefited from a monumental
effort involving, teamwork, diligence and creativity. Rio Puerco was able
to overcome significant structural problems: flat roofs, lack of insulation,
inadequate foundations, poor site drainage and impassable perimeter roads.
These were surmounted to rebuild the 28-year-old structurally deteriorating
multifamily housing project. The systematic demolition, new construction
and occupancy of the houses was accomplished without displacement of the
Rio Puerco Acres residents. In addition to providing future opportunity
for homeownership, improved living conditions and long-term affordability
to low income families, this project provides opportunities for employment
in a community with a deficient economic base and unemployment between 60
and 70 percent. The Rio Puerco Housing Project is also providing full-time
two-year construction employment opportunities for up to 50 Navajo people
and permanent jobs to four families in the long-term maintenance and management
of the project. Some of the project's cash flow is funding an aggressive
training program for semi-skilled construction workers. The project's $4
million payroll will help revitalize and stimulate the economy of the Navajo
nation.
Contact: Everett Ross, Phone: (520) 729-5157
Tracking Number: 245
Category: Program (Housing - Multifamily)
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