Welcome to CLPHA's Press Room
CLPHA experts welcome interview requests from print, radio, television, and online reporters and are happy to provide their insights on issues of public housing and related legislation and policy.
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David Greer
Director of Communications
(202) 550-1381 or [email protected].
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From New York Governor Kathy Hochul's press release:
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the opening of La Mora Senior Apartments, an affordable 60-unit, modern and highly energy-efficient building in the Hollow neighborhood of South Yonkers. The $44 million project was developed in partnership with the Municipal Housing Authority of the city of Yonkers.
“La Mora Senior Apartments creates the affordable, supportive housing opportunities that we know are a proven strategy for helping older New Yorkers achieve long-term stability,” Governor Hochul said. “My administration is dedicated to making our state more affordable for New Yorkers, and these apartments will give seniors the opportunity to be part of a vibrant community that is tailored to their needs.”
In the last five years, New York State Homes and Community Renewal has created or preserved 4,500 affordable homes – including 300 linked with supportive services – in Westchester County. La Mora Senior Apartments continues this effort and complements Governor Hochul's $25 billion comprehensive Housing Plan that will build or preserve 100,000 affordable homes across New York, including 10,000 with support services for vulnerable populations, plus the electrification of an additional 50,000 homes.
Located in South Yonkers, the development was constructed on a vacant parcel owned by MHACY that was once occupied by Longfellow Junior High School. The four-story building has 57 one-bedroom apartments and three two-bedroom apartments. All apartments will be affordable to residents 62 and older with incomes at or below 60 percent of the Area Median Income.
Amenities include a community room with kitchen, two business rooms, fitness center, central laundry, building-wide WiFi, storage units, landscaped courtyard and roof top deck. There are two elevators, buzzer entry, an emergency call system, a 24-hour security system, fire alarms and detectors, electronic access controls and surface parking reserved for residents.
Residents also have access to services provided the Yonkers Office for the Aging, including case management, home-delivered meals, assistance with entitlement programs, transportation, health awareness programs, access to nutrition centers, recreation and exercise programs, and supermarket and pharmacy delivery coordination. Services are funded by the Office for the Aging and the Westchester County Department of Senior Programs and Services.
The surrounding neighborhood has multiple public parks and a golf course, and the development is near St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center.
La Mora Senior Apartments is highly energy efficient, meets the criteria for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) New Construction - Housing Program by receiving ENERGY STAR(R) Multifamily New Construction certification, and is pursuing Passive House certification. All apartments will include low-flow plumbing fixtures, ENERGY STAR (R) appliances, individual high-efficiency electric heat and cooling systems, and LED lighting. The building has a high-efficiency envelope, dual-pane insulated windows, and a central electric hot water heating and distribution system. An emergency generator ensures that the building systems remain operable in the event of a blackout.
La Mora Senior Apartments is being co-developed by MHACY and the Mulford Corporation, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charitable development corporation formed by MHACY in 2004.
New York State Homes and Community Renewal financing for La Mora Senior Apartments includes $17.7 million in Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, a $7.9 million first mortgage and $9.1 million in subsidy. NYSERDA’s New Construction – Housing Program provided $240,000 in project incentives. Westchester County funded $3.4 million from the Housing Implementation Fund and the city of Yonkers gave $650,000 in HOME funds. MHACY provided a $2.6 million loan.
President & CEO of the Yonkers Housing Authority Wilson Kimball said, “The Mulford Corporation is incredibly grateful for the financial support La Mora has received at every level of government from the City, county, state and federal government. Allowing Yonkers seniors to age in place in the most resilient housing possible was clearly a collective vision.”
From GW Today:
Erin Athey has spent decades working in community medicine in Washington, D.C., a career that made her painfully aware of the disparity in care access between the city’s high-income and low-income residents.
“There is a 20-year difference in life expectancy between the White House and Ward 8,” the adjunct and former assistant professor at the George Washington University School of Nursing said. “So this is a system that needs a massive overhaul."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, while running a series of mobile clinic events with the District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA), Athey noticed that DCHA properties often have a small number of offline units reserved for community service providers. An epiphany dawned: Could these unused public housing units be used as “wellness hubs,” providing convenient health care services in the communities that need them most?
Athey started sketching out ideas on a napkin. In addition to the units that could potentially be repurposed into clinics, some DCHA properties also have large community spaces, which Athey realized could be used for educational events and free gatherings. Brainstorming “was an iterative process,” Athey said. “I was really trying to think about how we could anchor these health care services out in the community."
Due to her longstanding relationship with DCHA, Athey was able to consult with and quickly gain support from colleagues at the agency. “I shared with them that instead of just these mobile pop-ups we were doing, maybe we could establish some permanent mini-clinics along those same routes,” she remembered. “And because of COVID, I think there was sort of an urgency for them to say yes.”
Read GW Today's article "D.C. Public Housing Units Become Health Care Hubs."
CLPHA Members in Cuyahoga and Norfolk Earned Additional CNI Funding
Three of CLPHA’s members—Houston Housing Authority, Miami-Dade Public Housing & Community Development Department, and Syracuse Housing Authority—were awarded HUD Choice Neighborhoods Implementation (CNI) Grants for the first time. Two of CLPHA’s members—Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority and Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority—each received an additional $2.5 million in funding for current CNI projects in this latest round of CNI awards. HUD has announced a total of $325 million in CNI grants to fifteen communities.
The Syracuse Housing Authority and City of Syracuse were awarded $50 million for the McKinney Manor and Pioneer Homes public housing properties and the surrounding East Adams neighborhood. Residents of the historically Black East Adams community were displaced in 1959 when several blocks were razed for the construction of Interstate 81. As part of this project the New York State Department of Transportation will tear down elevated portions of I-81. In its place the new project will feature 1,404 new mixed-income housing units in a community grid design, enhanced access to quality education, increased economic opportunity through workforce and small business development, and improved neighborhood connectivity and visibility.
The Houston Housing Authority and the City of Houston received $50 million for the redevelopment of its Cuney Homes public housing property and the surrounding historically Black Third Ward neighborhood, a community that housed many residents emancipated from slavery in the years after Houston’s 1836 founding. When completed, the redevelopment will feature 1,115 mixed-income, transit-oriented units and offer increased access to mental health care, local education resources, and workforce programs.
The Miami-Dade County Public Housing and Community Development Department and the City of Miami were awarded nearly $40 million to redevelop the Culmer Place and Culmer Gardens public housing properties and the surrounding Overtown neighborhood, which was once a thriving entertainment and commercial hub known as the “Harlem of the South.” When completed, the project will include 1,069 mixed-income units, energy efficient design, new green spaces, clubhouses, community rooms, gardens, and improvements to security and lighting around the building.
Artists' renderings of future plans for CLPHA Members' Choice Neighborhoods communities, from top: Syracuse Housing Authority's McKinney Manor in Syracuse's East Adams neighborhood; Houston Housing Authority's Cuney Homes in Houston's Third Ward neighborhood; Miami-Dade Public Housing and Community Development Department's Culmer Gardens in Miami's Overtown neighborhood
The seven new CNI grantees will collectively develop over 6,500 new mixed-income units, including one-for-one replacement of 2,677 severely distressed public housing units. Grantees leverage the funds they receive from HUD with other public and private resources. The seven new awardees will collectively invest more than $2.65 billion in additional resources within their Choice Neighborhoods areas, meaning every $1 in HUD funds will generate $8.65 in additional resources.
Click here to view a summary of each community’s new CNI award. More information on CNI grants can be found here.
From FOX 25 Oklahoma City:
More than 10,000 books are now in the hands of the Oklahoma City Housing Authority (OCHA). They started giving some away to children Monday afternoon.
The books are coming from a partnership with a national book giveaway program called the Book Rich Environments Initiative.
"I just like reading," Maddox, who received a book, said.
Maddox was in luck on June 17, as OCHA hosted a summer kickoff book giveaway at one of its developments in south OKC.
"Education is always one of our components we focus on in the resident services department," Lacy McClain with OCHA said. "At OCHA, we value and want to promote literacy. We want to promote education among our residents."
In mid-June, CLPHA members from around the country gathered in bucolic Portland, OR for our 2024 Summer Meeting, hosted by Home Forward. Our gracious hosts highlighted their vibrant communities, impactful programs, and successful innovations throughout three days of events and conference sessions while showcasing Portland’s Pacific Northwest charm.
Our conference kicked off with a bus tour of Home Forward communities around Portland. Attendees first stopped at Hazel Ying Lee Apartments, a stunning, brand-new complex that features 68 units at 30% of area median income (AMI), 138 units at 60% AMI, and 30 permanent supportive housing units. Named for a Portlander who was the first Chinese American female pilot, Hazel Ying Lee has excellent transit links, multiple community rooms, free Wi-Fi in common spaces, a computer lab, a playground, and a basketball court. Our next stop was Dahlke Manor, a high-rise featuring 115 public housing units for seniors and individuals with disabilities. Under Oregon’s Congregate Housing Services Program residents receive hot meals, bathing assistance, and other services that help them live independently. Finally, we visited Dekum Courts, which includes 47 completed units and 140 more under construction. Dekum Courts offers numerous resident services, thanks in part to partnerships with a local elementary school and the nearby University of Oregon, Portland. Throughout the bus tour we passed several other Home Forward communities, and Home Forward staff served as excellent tour guides for both their city and their housing properties.
The following day we began our conference sessions with welcome remarks from Ivory N. Mathews, CLPHA Board Member and CEO of Home Forward, Matthew Gebhardt, Board Chair of Home Forward, and several local elected officials. Oregon Senator Ron Wyden provided video remarks for the conference, and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson, Oregon Senator Kayse Jama, and City of Portland Commissioner Carmen Rubio all welcomed attendees to their beautiful city and spoke to the importance of building strong local government partnerships to reduce homelessness and expand affordable housing opportunities. Damien Hall, Board Chair Emeritus of Home Forward and Co-Chair, Oregon’s Housing Production Advisory Council, Andrew B. Mendenhall, President and Chief Executive Officer of Central City Concern, and Andrew Lofton, HUD Northwest Regional Administrator for Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, also gave remarks. As always, our morning included our Ripples of Hope session, where attendees shared the latest good news from their PHAs and inspired each other with their success stories.
The afternoon was filled with enlightening, engaging panels prepared by Home Forward that shared learnings, challenges, and successes from their programs and operations. A panel on PHA wage equity provided valuable insights and actionable strategies from both Home Forward and King County Housing Authority on how to advance pay equity and foster a more inclusive, equitable workplace employees, a PHA’s most valuable resource. Panelists from both PHAs emphasized the importance of ensuring that all of their staff earned a wage that enabled them to comfortably afford housing so that their PHAs did not contribute to housing insecurity and market instability in their communities. The next panel covered Home Forward’s journey to address increasing property losses and rising insurance rates through use of its insurance captive LLC. Panelists from Home Forward and Marsh Captive Solutions shared actionable insights that other housing authorities can adopt to fortify their own risk management strategies in a landscape of relentless increases in insurance rates and repair costs. Our afternoon sessions concluded with a session on centering resident voices in advocacy and leadership, highlighting the impact of Home Forward’s Resident Community Builders (RCB) initiative. Panelists agreed that having RCBs across Home Forward communities has greatly helped to increase engagement and trust between the PHA and its residents. Our full day of conference sessions concluded with a reception at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, hosted by Home Forward, that allowed attendees to unwind and mingle with beautiful views of the Willamette River.
Our last morning began with a presentation from Home Foward and partner Burch Energy Services on their crucial work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, enhance social equity, and build climate resilience in vulnerable communities. The speakers discussed sources of emissions in affordable housing, the importance of climate action, vulnerability assessments, effective strategies for emission reduction, measuring emissions, setting key performance indicators, and engaging stakeholders in sustainable practices. Following the presentation, Home Forward concluded the conference with two sessions on their permanent supportive housing work. The first session provided a snapshot of where Home Forward is now with their PSH efforts and discussed the PHAs’ successes and challenges in deploying supportive services, aligning local resources, developing and funding new housing, and advocating for a better system of care. The second session expanded its focus to the wider Portland Metro area, exploring what leadership in PSH efforts looks like regionwide and how various partners can collaborate to expand and improve the region’s supportive housing system. The conference concluded with the announcement of the happy news that HUD had delayed the NSPIRE-V compliance date until October 1, 2025, a relief for PHAs who had been preparing for an unfeasible, earlier start date.
CLPHA extends our deepest gratitude to Home Forward for sharing their city and their perspective with us, and for helping us to put on such an informative slate of conference sessions and events. We would also like to thank our many sponsors for their support of the meeting – we could not have put on this conference without them. We hope our attendees enjoyed their time in Portland, and we look forward to seeing our members again in November in Washington, D.C.!
