“One look at the neighborhoods created with federal HOPE
VI funds under the direction of the Housing Authority of Daytona
Beach is proof,” said Lillian Sampson, who chairs the authority.
The neighborhoods include The Villages at Halifax on
International Speedway Boulevard (formerly known as Halifax
Park), Lakeside Villages on South Street near Turie T. Small
Elementary School (formerly known as Martin Luther King Jr.
Apartments), and Pine Haven on Mary McLeod Bethune
Boulevard (formerly known as Bethune Village).
Early seeds of the Daytona Beach HOPE VI initiative were
sown in 1938 when Daytona Beach established its housing
authority, which is dedicated to providing assistance for
affordable,
attractive, and safe housing and self-sufficiency opportunities for
low- and moderate-income families.
The HOPE VI program plays a vital role in the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development’s efforts to
transform public housing. It was established in 1992 and provides
grants to improve the nation’s public housing through demolition
of distressed buildings, rehabilitation of structures and
construction of new buildings. Community and support services
also are offered to residents, including assistance for those
relocated because of the revitalization efforts. HOPE is an acronym
for Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere.
The federal program supports local efforts to transform public
housing in several ways.
These include changing the physical shape of public housing;
establishing incentives for
resident self-sufficiency and comprehensive services that empower
residents; lessening
concentrations of poverty by placing public housing in non poverty
neighborhoods and
promoting mixed-income communities; and forging partnerships with
other agencies, local
governments, nonprofit organizations, and private businesses to
leverage support and
resources.
Although federal funding had been made available, the fact the
Housing Authority of
Daytona Beach won $24.7 million in HOPE VI grants was the longest of
long shots and is a
tribute to persistence and creativity.
“HOPE VI grants usually are awarded to large cities with large
housing issues,” said
Joyours “Pete” Gamble, the authority’s executive director. “So, we
were in competition with
cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Tampa and many others. And the
cost of compiling an
eligible grant application – with no guarantee of actually winning a
grant – can approach
$500,000. So, we went into this process without big-city clout or a
big-city checkbook.”
Housing authority leaders took a one-bite-at-a-time approach
to compete with the big guys and circumvent the customary costs.
Grant applications were submitted in phases over several years, each
earning a rejection, but each yielding valuable information on how
to improve subsequent submissions.
“We learned a great deal from the agency that was rejecting our
applications and from the cities with whom we were competing,”
said Gamble. He added that many people helped along the way.
U.S. Representative
John Mica supported the project and
helped local officials run the gauntlet at HUD to win the grant
funding.
Mica remembered the fight for the funding. “The federal
government should not be a slumlord,” he said in reference to the
old Halifax Park buildings, built in 1940. “The seniors and
residents
of the area deserve better.”
U.S. Senator Bob Graham and U.S. Representative Corrine
Brown also rolled up their sleeves to help win the grants. Volusia
County Government also was a partner in the process, cutting red
tape and reducing expenses. Volusia County Chair Frank Bruno
traveled to Washington, D.C. to elevate the community voice in the
effort. Success finally came in 2002 and 2003 with approval of
applications for grants totaling nearly $25 million. Since then the
three neighborhoods covered by the grants have undergone the kind
of transformation HUD had in mind when it created the HOPE VI
program.
The Villages at Halifax is now complete and its 71 units are
occupied. The project came in on budget and ahead of schedule.
Lakeside Village is nearing
completion and occupancy of its 103 units begins this month. Pine
Haven will offer 136 units
when complete. Its foundations are in place, vertical construction
has begun and completion is
slated for 2008. At this point, the new neighborhoods have added 17
families to the ranks of
Volusia County homeowners. When all work is complete, this HOPE VI
work will have added
80 new homes to the county tax rolls, with prices ranging from
$135,000-$180,000.
All three neighborhoods offer a mix of housing that is subsidized,
mixed in with
unsubsidized housing. HUD does not reveal which units are
subsidized, but does have
requirements of those whose housing is subsidized, which includes
holding a job for those
under 65.
Residents give the new neighborhoods high marks for quality and
aesthetics, as do city
planners and those engaged in economic development. “Revitalization
is the right thing to do
for residents and makes the city more competitive in the economic
development arena,” said
Rick Michael, Volusia County director of economic development. “The
fact this is one of the
smallest housing authorities to win HOPE VI grants is testimony to
what can be accomplished
through dedication and teamwork.”
