Private sector and nonprofit partners in the Plan for Transformation reported on progress in tenant involvement, relocation, development and service coordination.
Recognizing that much of
the Chicago
Housing Authority (CHA) Plan for Transformation hinges
on the expertise and commitment of private sector partners, the
goal at
this
Quarterly Stakeholders Update was to hear the perspective of key implementers forwarding
various aspects of the Plan. Four panelists shared their experiences and visions
related to tenant involvement, relocation, development and service
coordination:
Moderator Spruiell White, of the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation,
asked each panelist to respond to two questions:
- What is your role in the Plan for Transformation, and
how it is different from the work of your organization prior to the Plan?
- How will you be helping the CHA succeed with the long term tasks of (a)
offering existing CHA residents access the opportunities created through the
Plan for Transformation, and (b) promoting viable neighborhoods in the
communities where CHA residents will be living in the future?
Wiggins said
that
her work was focused on raising awareness of the site-specific eligibility
criteria of new developments, and determining whether
former CHA residents will be eligible. “We must
help people get what they need in order to meet the criteria, because all residents
should have a chance to come back [to CHA housing]."Wiggins cited the ABLA
case as an example to be followed: most residents who chose to were able to return
to their homes.
Building on lessons learned from the
Gautreaux I
program
, Stanback described the
achievements of Gautreaux II as a complementary tool for the relocation strategy
devised by the CHA. The program serves citywide public housing residents (and
not strictly those directly affected by relocation due to the Plan for
Transformation), by assisting those interested in relocating to opportunity
areas (more racially integrated, lower poverty neighborhoods) using Housing
Choice Vouchers. Looking ahead into the future, Stanback said that LCMOC would
need to play a key role in guaranteeing the stability of the new, mixed-income
communities. Currently, the organization is partnering with two service
providers working on case management and social service connectors. For more
information on the Gautreaux II program, click here
The goal of
The Community Builders Inc.
, said its Senior
Vicepresident Pat Costigan, goes far beyond the simple
financing and construction of sites (Madden/Wells/Darrow andLakepark Crescent). The company
is responsible for assisting public housing
residents in accessing this new housing opportunity, and promoting their
ongoing stability within the building via the coordination of property management
and pertinent support services. “We need to offer positive incentives for
the residents to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the
Plan for Transformation,” he said. Costigan also said that, in order
to foster asset building and provide supportive services to make the new mixed-income
communities succeed, strong partnerships would be key. Community
Builders is partnering with the
Target Group
and
Joe Williams on human capital development
— connecting residents to employment and business opportunities. It is
also working with Ujima — a Swahili word for “collective work and responsibility”—,
a resident directed nonprofit to support educational, civic and
social objectives in the Mid-South/Bronzeville neighborhood.
Based on his experience in other
HOPE
VI developments around the country
, Costigan summarized the lessons learned
in
10 points
.
Geer said that his organization has gone through important changes as it has
navigated the Plan for Transformation’s implementation process.
Heartland Alliance
is currently providing supportive
services to residents living at Jazz on the Boulevard (formerly known as the
Drexel site) and at ABLA Homes developments. The organization’s goal is to
enable every family to meet the requirements of the redeveloped housing. Key to
the success of this work is the change from the old Service Connector (referral
system) model of providing services to a more comprehensive system that will
link people directly with the services they need. Although he recognized that
this was a work in progress, Geer offered some tips:
- Develop engaging outreach activities using information provided by the
Service Connector program and the Chicago Housing Authority.
- Develop effective case management assessment strategies in order to
evaluate where residents are on their way to meeting site-specific
requirements, along with a good case management service plan to help them
address the barriers that prevent themfrom meeting those criteria.
- Develop linkages with other agencies working in the community, in order to
provide comprehensive supportive services dealing with domestic violence,
substance abuse, mental health and other issues.
- Focus on housing counseling, trying to maintain lease-compliance and avoid
eviction through ongoing support.
- Focus on outcomes, developing measurable criteria to check progress and
assess performance.
As has been the case at past Stakeholder Updates, numerous issues were raised
after the presentationsthat warrant further discussion and investigation.
One professor expressed concerns about how to develop effective marketing
strategies to attract reluctant public housing residents to homes built in the
new mixed-income communities. He also wondered how to integrate families with
children living in public housing together with childless couples living in
market-rate units at these new communities.
A tenant from Altgeld Gardens advocated for more effective needs assessment
strategies.
A local researcher and a local area council (LAC) president both expressed
concerns about the fact that drug screenings are mandatory for public and
affordable housing renters, but not for homebuyers, in the new developments, and
wondered if less intrusive criteria could be developed for screening prospective
tenants.
Another key issue raised by several attendants was what the future role of
LACs will be in the new mixed-income developments.
The meeting closed with an affirmation that, while many of the questions
raised can be answered by CHA staff familiar with the latest programs and
regulations, other questions were more about the need to build consensus among
the diverse group of stakeholders in attendance at the day’s meeting. Stay tuned
to this Web page for progress on both fronts.