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 The New Communities initiative is a District sponsored redevelopment of the physical and human architecture of neighborhoods troubled by concentrations of a high crime and poverty rates. The project is to fight these conditions by transforming highly concentrated low-income neighborhoods into healthy mixed-income neighborhoods that protect housing for low-income residents with a one-for-one replacement of existing affordable housing around improved community anchors, such as schools, recreation, libraries and health clinics. It also focuses on the redevelopment of social infrastructure through linkages to job training, asset building, counseling and other supportive human services.
The Northwest #1 project is guided by a committee representing a full partnership between the Northwest #1 Council and the District of Columbia to for purposes of performing the planning, agenda setting and decision-making for all phases of the initiative.
The Northwest One Council includes leaders from more than 8 properties in the area: Temple Courts, Sursum Corda Cooperative, Tyler House, Kelsey Gardens, Museum Square, Golden Rule Townhouses, Golden Rule Plaza, Turn Key and K Street Homeowners as well as leaders from the Perry School Community Services Center, Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, The Center City Community Corporation, and the Gonzaga College High School. The Council is furthered supported through advocacy from the Washington Interfaith Network (WIN), and area churches: Mt.Airy Baptist, Southern Baptist, Mt.Lebanon Baptist, Holy Redeemer and St. Aloysius Roman Catholic Churches.
The Northwest Council has a long history of accomplishments, dating back to the 1960s, of providing leadership on pressing affordable housing and community development issues continuously in the Northwest #1 area. The area is in the Northwest area of DC involving the location of the 8 properties represented on the Council and some additional land to be acquired along the North Capitol street.
The District of Columbia provides leadership through the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, following the role previously performed by the City Administrator under the Williams administration. The Department of Housing and Community Development and other DC agencies are engaged as needed to ensure the District performance of its responsibilities to this project.
The District and its community partner, Northwest #1 have worked collaboratively to develop the Northwest One Revitalization Plan under the New Communities Plan that promises to transform the neighborhood into a viable and sustainable mixed-income and mixed-use community. Work on implementation has now began, and include Phase I activities that required the acquisition of Northwest One properties. Temple Courts, and NCRC and Gonzaga High School properties have recently been acquired by the city, paving the way for the release of a Request for Proposals for Phase I development of these properties according to the NW #1 Revitalization Plan and the Guiding Principles of their New Communities project.
While one of the guiding principals is to build first, then relocate residents to the new homes, Temple Court residents are being relocated several years before their new homes will be completed. This decision was brought about because of the progressively deteriorating condition of the Temple Court property and the resulting unacceptable living standards for the residents. This was a very difficult decision and involved the Mayor and Councilmember Wells. The DC Housing Authority is playing a major role in assisting residents to ensure that all residents secure safe and sanitary replacement housing in the interim until they can return to their new homes in the New Communities.
We will continue to keep the community updated as progress continues.
One person has commented on this article. (1) Untitled
2007-08-06 23:11:24 Please - do not speak of "affordable housing." The most abused word in the vocabulary of American English is "Affordable.” There are formulas for Federal and DC median income measures, and housing costs should not exceed one-third of these. Kindly leave the word "affordable" to salesmen who have emptied the term of real meaning. |
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