Housing Authority purchase 4 SE apartment complexes (Huntsville, Madison: broker, how much, new house)

[macwell]

South Huntsville Civic Association


PUBLIC HEARING...Huntsville Housing Authority Still in Fantasyland?


South Huntsville residents are encouraged to attend the HHA Public Hearing on Oct. 29, 2009 at 5:00 p.m. It is your opportunity to provide feedback on HHA's 5-year plan which pushes to "de-concentrate poverty" and "guarantee affordability of housing in higher income neighborhoods so that (HHA) residents may benefit from high-performing schools and other quality of life factors."

[ionlife]

are they busing from there to HC? Grissom?

[tammie2]

Are they nuts?!?!

Has there been any talk of action against the city for loss of property value?

IIRC, there was action taken against another city when the city rezoned and neighboring homes lost value. Don't know if it is possible in this scenario, but you might want to look into it.

Very sad that reality seems to be lost in this situation.

[macwell]

More on the HHA Board Meeting « South Hsv Civic Association Blog
By southhsv

Two of the biggest stories from this week’s Huntsville Housing Authority board meeting were reported in Tuesday’s Huntsville Times: The discovery of ground pollution which must be cleaned up at Searcy Homes and the HHA board’s decision to move forward with the previously-discussed redevelopment of the Brookside housing project.

You may recall that Searcy Homes (off of Holmes Avenue, southeast of the intersection of I-565 and Memorial Parkway) was one of the projects the HHA unsuccessfully sought a federal grant to redevelop earlier this year. Now it suddenly emerges that there is pollution on the site that will require the “temporary” relocation of many of the residents. Far be it for us to go all conspiratorial, but this has struck several of our members as strangely coincidental. This situation will certainly bear watching.

Meanwhile, the HHA board approved plowing ahead with its redevelopment plans for Brookside (in the Lowe Mill area), despite the fact that the HHA would seem to have little chance of winning the federal grant it will need to pay for it. The board unanimously approved partnerships with two private developers on this project – Aslan Ventures of Louisville, Kentucky and the local Big Spring Partners, Inc. – although neither had submitted redevelopment plans and the board apparently knew little about either company.

So who are these two developers?
Aslan Ventures is a Louisville-based real estate development company whose Hallmark division specializes in developing “affordable housing,” particularly multi-family projects. The company last year was ranked number 17 on the list of top 50 Affordable Housing Developers and Owners by Affordable Housing Finance Magazine.

Big Spring Partners is a local non-profit group that is seeking to spearhead the redevelopment of downtown Huntsville. It’s board is a who’s-who conclave of local bigwigs, and the company made news this summer with a sightseeing trip to Chattanooga. It is no secret that proponents of downtown redevelopment would dearly love to rid downtown Huntsville of its public housing projects, and most don’t seem to much care where they go.

Interestingly, another story on the front page of Tuesday’s Times involved Regions Bank’s move to donate its historic bank building on Courthouse Square to none other than Big Spring Partners. The building is slated to mainly be used for offices, and it already has its first tenant lined up: the city’s Community Development Department. Among other things, this department works on issues related to low-income housing, develops programs and writes federal grant proposals for improving low-income neighborhoods, and serves as the city’s primary functional liaison to the HHA. In fact, the Community Development office is administering the city’s portion of the Neighborhood Stabilization Act (NSA) funds that the HHA is currently using to purchase foreclosed homes in South Huntsville.

Does all of this mean anything? Maybe, maybe not. But at the very least, it shows once again how prominent moneyed interests are working hand-in-hand with the public housing machine in ways that are not necessarily in the interests of South Huntsville.


Other items from the board meeting:
- Some new residents of HHA’s Stone Manor Luxury Apartments were brought in to effusively praise their new accommodations. So once again we ask: What, exactly, is the incentive for such thoroughly happy tenants to ever become self-sufficient if they can pay next-to-nothing and live this well? And don’t forget the pool.

- Representatives from the highly-political Interfaith Mission thanked the HHA for giving South Huntsville residents new neighbors. Don’t be shocked if The Times’ “Faith & Values” editor, the equally political Kay Campbell, goes all weak in the knees over this in Friday’s newspaper, as she does for everything else the Interfaith Mission does.

- Sixty-two families either left HHA housing or were evicted during the previous quarter. Evictions, it was disclosed, are expensive due to the damage done to the apartments by evictees. Also, it seems that empty units are often vandalized by other tenants. In all, the HHA had to write off $50,000 last quarter due to unpaid rent and repairing these types of damages.

- And, of course, there was the small matter of the purchase of another South Huntsville home, as was mentioned on this blog previously.

[macwell]

Read tonight in the Huntsville Times about the meeting..scheduled for this evening..

South Huntsville Residents Plan Event to Protest Public Housing « South Hsv Civic Association Blog
By southhsv


As mentioned previously, during the Huntsville Housing Authority’s (HHA) October board meeting it was announced that HHA would purchase a single-family home on Drummond Road for use with low-income, public housing residents. The property is located off Whitesburg Drive in South Huntsville, behind Whitesburg School.

We (SHCA) were contacted by concerned residents to help them organize an effort to educate their neighbors and help them voice their concern regarding this decision by the HHA.

As a result, the residents in the Whitesburg-area subdivisions of Fleming Meadows and Westbury Estates have planned to rally against HHA’s effort to put public housing in their neighborhoods and are holding a petition-signing event.

The meeting will be held tomorrow night (Tuesday, October 27) at 6:30 PM in the Fern Bell Recreation Center behind Whitesburg School. South Huntsville residents are encouraged to come by the meeting anytime between 6:30 and 8:30 PM to sign a petition opposing the HHA’s goal to decentralize public housing by purchasing property in South Huntsville.

While there, residents will have the opportunity to learn more about the goals of the HHA, the potential impact public housing could have on their neighborhoods, and the importance of working with elected officials to pass legislation that would limit the authority of the HHA.

[macwell]

Letters to the editor, Huntsville Times, Tuesday Oct. 27 | Times Views on the News - al.com - al.com


Housing opposition
We are strongly opposed to the Huntsville Housing Authority's plan to buy houses in Fleming Meadow for use as replacements for existing Section 8 housing that is being demolished.

Don't we have enough problems that were created when the city of Huntsville allowed the building of the apartment complex on property not zoned for multifamily dwelling?

In addition, we already have a terrible problem with speeding, running of stop signs and reckless driving in this area. This is a problem which we have complained about to the chief of police numerous times.

[macwell]

HHA Public Hearing on Oct. 29, 2009 at 5:00 p.m.

HHA's 5-year plan -
Housing coming to which neighborhood next?

[Charles]

"HHA's intent is to resell these homes at market value to Katrina victim families or returning military service families. These will include families who represent 120% of the median income."
For example, a family of four would have an income of as much as $81,000."


from


Huntsville group opposes HHA purchase - WAFF.com: North Alabama News, Radar, Weather, Sports and Jobs-

[Elizabeth_G]

Originally Posted by macwell

Another One Bites the Dust… « South Hsv Civic Association Blog

Another One Bites the Dust…
By southhsv

The Huntsville Housing Authority (HHA) board of directors had its monthly meeting yesterday, and Executive Director Michael Lundy announced yet another South Huntsville single-family home the HHA will soon be purchasing: This one on Drummond Road, near Whitesburg Elementary and Middle Schools. Like the rest of the homes the HHA is purchasing, this one will either be sold or rented, but will in either case be designated for use as “affordable housing”.

There was no word as of yesterday as to when “affordable housing” will be made available at The Ledges or in Twickenham.

ROTFL...thanks for a great laugh!
If they would kindly make this possible, I'll gladly quit my job so I can qualify!

[gsp4ever]

Originally Posted by macwell

There was no word as of yesterday as to when “affordable housing” will be made available at The Ledges or in Twickenham.

This is the best idea yet. I'm sure multiple families could live in one of those big houses. Good neighborhood, convenient location, good schools. Let's move forward on this HHA.