Hope VI progresses despite bald eagle
nesting
Home ownership
is a key component of the so called American dream. Housing
Opportunities for People Everywhere (HOPE) is a federal program that
works to keep the dream alive.
Across the
nation, the program provides funding for 100,000 deteriorated
housing authority units in need of replacement. In Volusia County,
the program, known as Hope VI, is funding the construction of 420
new homes in Daytona Beach along E.
International Speedway Boulevard.
“In addition
to being an attractive new addition to the City of Daytona Beach,
the Villages at Halifax portion of the initiative is well situated
front and center in the city to signal the continuation of the
area’s revitalization,” said Emory Counts, Community
and Economic Development Director for the City of Daytona Beach.
“This stretch of ISB is traveled by many visitors to the area and
will help to project a positive image and energy.”
Grants of
nearly $25 million fund demolition of old housing units and
construction of new ones.
The Daytona
Beach Housing Authority, working in concert with the City of Daytona
Beach and Volusia County Government, was successful in securing
these funds. In fact, the only second tier cities to land Hope VI
grants in that funding cycle were Daytona Beach and Lakeland, which
are replacing about 1,100 homes. Most of the grants went to larger
cities, whose programs call for replacement of about 7,000 - 10,000
homes each.
Local
officials have announced an additional grant of $100,000 that
supports increased resident access to computer technology. Another
grant of $40,000 will fund the hiring of a staff worker for a
program to help public housing residents become self-sufficient.
Under the Hope
VI program about half of the units will offer a subsidy for families
that meet strict criteria for assistance. The subsidized units are
granted blindly for 150 units that are situated randomly among the
Hope VI residences. Only the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD), the Daytona Beach Housing Authority and the
resident know which units are subsidized.
Construction
of the project is well under way.
The primary
location is along E. International Speedway Boulevard, east of Nova
Road. Other home locations are across from Turie T. Small Elementary
School and on Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard, east of Nova Road.
The construction along International Speedway Boulevard is part of a
makeover for the area since several car dealerships moved out. It
will complement the already completed construction of the Mary
McLeod Bethune Center for the Performing Arts and the Center for
Civic Engagement, both to the east on the campus of Bethune-Cookman
College on International Speedway Boulevard. This gives Hope VI and
Bethune-Cookman College a strong new presence.
B-CC President
Dr. Trudie Kibbe Reed, who also chairs the Higher Education
Consortium, a group of five college presidents working together on
community and economic development initiatives, feels the center
provides a location for a program
that is central to the philosophy of civic engagement.
Economic
development can restore the vitality of the area, according to
Volusia County Economic Development Director Rick Michael. “The Hope
VI program, the investments by Bethune-Cookman College and other
initiatives can spur new business development along ISB and prevent
further decay in this central part of the city,” Michael said.
Joyours “Pete”
Gamble, director of the federally funded Daytona Beach Housing
Authority, agrees. He sees the potential to attract national
companies to the area, based on an available labor force and
affordable housing. He also sees the improvements as a catalyst for
progress in coming years. “With the Hope VI program addressing
problem areas that are in the heart of the city, there may be a
ripple effect, bringing progress well beyond the neighborhoods being
re-created,” he said.
But, while the
Hope VI program will be a symbol of re-development success when
completed, another American symbol has caused delays and increased
costs in the program. The symbol of America, the bald eagle, was
found nesting at the Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard location and
has put the project 16 months behind schedule, causing a “set aside”
of nearly 25 percent of what had been classified as buildable land.
Accordingly,
this has contributed to a $1.5 million increase in design costs.
Another problem has been the cost of rental housing for residents
who were displaced during the construction process. Over the past
two years, the cost of rental housing has increased 35 percent.
Still,
Gamble’s enthusiasm for the project remains as strong as it was
during the grant application process. He said occupancy could begin
at the Villages at Halifax as early as July. All construction is
expected to be completed by 2009. “Today, we are beginning so see
the fruits of our labor,” he said. “We now can see the day when new
neighborhoods will thrive and provide a better environment in which
to live and raise a family.” ■
