HUD AWARDS $20 MILLION TO REVITALIZE SHERIDAN TERRACE PUBLIC HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IN WASHINGTON, DC
HOPE VI grant to replace Sheridan Terrace with new mixed-income neighborhood

WASHINGTON - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson today awarded the Housing Authority of the District of Columbia (DCHA) a $20 million grant to support the redevelopment of the former Sheridan Terrace public housing complex into an attractive mixed-income community.

"This funding not only gives cities the resources to build quality affordable housing in these communities, it also improves the quality of life of the residents who live in the public housing," said Jackson. "I'm glad the Nation's Capital will once again use HOPE VI funds to transform neighborhoods and lives."

DCHA will use HUD's HOPE VI Revitalization grant to revitalize the former Sheridan Terrace public housing development which was built in 1961. Prior to its demolition in 1997, Sheridan Terrace consisted of 183 units. DCHA intends to rebuild 110 public housing units, 69 affordable rental units and 50 affordable homes for purchase. The redevelopment plan also includes 107 market rate homes for purchase.

DCHA was selected from a pool of 29 applications HUD received from public housing authorities (PHAs) across the country. Including this grant, DCHA has been awarded seven HOPE VI Revitalization grants. Other grantees for the 2007 funding round are housing authorities in Boston, Fayetteville, N.C., New Orleans, and Phoenix, AZ. Including these grants, HUD has awarded 242 HOPE VI Revitalization grants since 1993 to 128 PHAs that total approximately $5.9 billion.

The housing authority will pay relocation and reoccupancy costs as needed for former residents who wish to return to the revitalized site. Former residents will be given first priority to move back to the newly constructed units. Alternatively, if residents choose not to return to public housing, they may keep their rental voucher assistance, if that is what they used to relocate from the site originally. In addition, former residents will get job training and other support services under the Community and Supportive Services component of the HOPE VI grant.

HUD's HOPE VI Program was created in 1992 following a report by the National Commission on Severely Distressed Public Housing, which concluded that approximately 86,000 public housing units in the U.S. needed revitalization.

PHAs are competitively selected for HOPE VI grants based on many factors including the effectiveness and project readiness of their revitalization plans. HUD gives PHAs the flexibility to develop revitalization plans that meet their local needs. Among other criteria, grantees are also awarded funds based on the capacity of the housing authority and its developer to administer and manage completion of the revitalization effort; the severity of physical distress of the development; the ability of the housing authority to supplement the HOPE VI grant with funding from other sources, private, state or local government; and the ability to provide supportive services to displaced residents.

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