2000 Best Practice AwardsProgram and Geographical Winners: Indiana
Best Practice: Indiana HUD and Indiana NAACP Partnership
Indiana HUD and the NAACP Promote Housing
Issues
Elkhart.
Community Builder Fellow Teresa Jeter-Newburn partnered in October 1999
with the Indiana chapter of the National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (NAACP) to promote fair housing rights, affordable housing
and economic development. The collaboration was announced at the annual
Indiana NAACP state conference which was attended by an estimated 25 chapters
representing 92 counties. This was in response to the State of Indiana's
1996 Assessment of Impediments to Fair Housing highlighted the need for
a centralized, uniform method of receiving and documenting fair housing
complaints. The report also documented that few communities in the state
are prepared to handle fair housing issues. While residents are aware that
housing discrimination exists in their communities, the number of documented
complaints does not reflect the level of discrimination. The local HUD office
and NAACP chapters promote fair housing rights through a public outreach
campaign that includes educating residents about fair housing and assisting
them in completing fair housing complaint forms. To date, 250 fair housing
complaint forms have been distributed statewide.
Contact: Franklin Breckenridge, Phone: (219)
264-5675
Tracking Number: 1451
Winning Category: Program (Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity)
Best Practice: Ravenbrook Apartments
Ravenbrook Apartments Provide Affordable,
Safe Housing
Indianapolis.
The Ravenbrook Corporation demolished a 26-unit apartment building, consisting
mostly of one-bedroom kitchenette apartments, and built the new Ravenbrook
Apartments. Ravenbrook Apartments, with 15 new townhouses at the original
site and at two duplexes at other sites is a project of the Ravenbrook Corporation,
a 501 (c)(3). Ravenbrook Apartments three housing complexes are located
near public transportation and within walking distance to many shops and
services. The project, which enabled 19 low- to moderate-income families
find safe housing and invested in excess of $1.8 million in the community,
was made possible through various funding sources, including $48,000 from
HUD and $387,000 from Bank One.
Contact: Charles Montgomery, Phone: (317)
931-8090
Tracking Number: 461
Winning Category: Program (Community Planning and Development)
Best Practice: Back Home in Indiana
Helping the Disabled Become Homeowners
Indianapolis.
Back Home in Indiana assists people with disabilities to become homeowners.
In selected areas, the organization establishes teams to work with disabled
individuals; members include service providers and housing providers. Back
Home in Indiana established a homeownership committee for Marion County
and members include Habitat for Humanity, Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing
Partnership, Near North Development Corporation, the local HUD office, Indianapolis
Resource Center for Independent Living and Independent Residential Living
of Central Indiana. Since its inception, one program participant has become
a homeowner, two are working with Habitat for Humanity to become homeowners
and three others are at various stages of purchasing a home. To help facilitate
the homeownership process, Back Home in Indianas committee members
offered monetary assistance. The Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership
secured a loan from their portfolio at one percent below conventional rates
and provided $5,000 in closing costs with the City of Indianapolis
Home Investment Partnerships funds. The Indiana Department of Vocational
Rehabilitation provided approximately $30,000 in funds for modifications
to make the property accessible to the homebuyer.
Contact: Debra McCarty, Phone: (317) 274-6865
Tracking Number: 619
Winning Category: Program (Community Builder)
Best Practice: Tibbs Court
Tibbs Court: Innovation in Housing Finance
Indianapolis.
Tibbs Court, located in the Near Westside neighborhood of Indianapolis,
is a scattered site, 50-unit housing development, one of the first in the
nation to be financed with a combination of low-income housing tax credits
and public housing subsidies as well as HOME and CDBG funds. The Westside
Community Development Corporation and the Indianapolis Housing Agency established
the Tibbs Court Homeownership Preparedness Program for the developments
residents. By participating in this program, residents can reside in one
of the Tibbs Court units, while attending a series of classes on homeownership.
Residents build Homeownership Development Accounts to assist in downpayment
costs. They also receive credit and investment counseling to prepare them
for homeownership. Residents must establish homeownership, higher education
and employment goals as well. To date all 50 units are occupied by residents
enrolled in the program and 40 more people are on a waiting list. The program
also has positively impacted the community by acting as a catalyst for new
neighborhood improvement projects.
Contact: George Courtney, Telephone: (317)
327-5854
Tracking Number: 987
Winning Category: Geographical
Best Practice: NAACP Community Development
Resource Center
NAACP Helping Gary Residents Increase
Homeownership
Gary.
To help the citizens of Gary increase homeownership, the National Association
for the Advancement of Colored Peoples Community Development Resource
Center developed and offered a homebuyer workshop program, providing first-time
homebuyers with the knowledge and tools necessary to benefit from the citys
down payment assistance program. In the city of Gary, more than 15,000 of
the 40,752 low-to-moderate income households are renters. As a result, the
center holds Fannie-Mae-approved workshops to prepare individuals for homeownership.
Discussions include shopping for a home and obtaining a mortgage, managing
the closing process and exploring life as a homeowner. More than 300 potential
homeowners have participated in the centers homebuyer workshop program
and 214 participants have been issued certificates for successful program
completion. These workshops were made possible with $30,000 from HUD and
$100,000 from Bank One.
Contact: Jeanne Meggs, Phone: (301) 226-7237
Tracking Number: 159
Winning Category: Program (Community Planning and Development)
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