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.
For media inquiries, please contact:
David Greer
Director of Communications
(202) 550-1381 or dgreer@clpha.org.
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To view all of CLPHA's press statements, click here.
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March 11, 2021
(Washington, D.C.) March 11, 2021 – Sunia Zaterman, executive director of the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, released the following statement upon President Biden’s signing of the American Rescue Plan Act into law:
“The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities applauds President Biden for signing into law the groundbreaking American Rescue Plan Act. When combined with the $25 billion in emergency rental assistance in the previous relief bill, the total $45 billion in emergency rental assistance and $5 billion to prevent homelessness is scaled to the enormous scope of the rental crisis with more than 11 million renters behind on rent. The law is also historic in nature as it represents the largest federal investment since the creation of the Great Society programs more than 55 years ago, which launched what is now known as the Housing Choice Voucher program. Estimates show that the American Rescue Plan Act’s war on poverty will reduce the projected poverty rate this year by half. This historic investment in alleviating poverty and expanding housing opportunities constitutes one of the most significant steps towards ending racial inequity since the legislation passed during the Civil Rights Era.
"The American Rescue Plan acknowledges that housing stability for all Americans is essential to the economic well-being, racial equity, and public health of the nation. While this legislation directs critical federal investment to pandemic relief, new transformational federal investments will be needed to address the affordable housing crisis that was only exacerbated by the pandemic, including a 10-year roadmap to recapitalize the public housing portfolio and a permanent and significant expansion of the Housing Choice Voucher program.
"CLPHA looks forward to working with the Biden-Harris administration to make stable housing a reality for all Americans."
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
About CLPHA’s Housing Is Initiative |
(202) 550-1381
For Immediate Release
March 10, 2021 |
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education. CLPHA’s 70 members represent virtually every major metropolitan area in the country. Together they manage 40 percent of the nation’s public housing program; administer more than a quarter of the Housing Choice Voucher program; and operate a wide array of other housing programs. Learn more at clpha.org and on Twitter @CLPHA .
About CLPHA’s Housing Is Initiative
The Housing Is Initiative, led by the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, helps build a future where sectors work together to improve life outcomes. Housing stability is a critical first step to improve life outcomes for low-income children, families, and seniors; CLPHA’s Housing Is Initiative is based on the premise that sectors can better meet needs when they work together. Housing Is establishes, broadens, and deepens efforts to align affordable housing, education, and health systems to produce positive, long-term results. Learn more at housingis.org and on Twitter @housing_is.
(202) 550-1381
For Immediate Release
March 4, 2021 |
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(Washington, D.C.) March 4, 2021 – Sunia Zaterman, executive director of the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, released the following statement urging the swift passage of the American Rescue Plan Act in the U.S. Senate: “The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities calls for the Senate to pass the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which includes desperately needed $30 billion in emergency rental assistance, $5 billion in single-use vouchers, and a significant extension of the eviction moratorium. “This legislation is critical to addressing the rental crisis facing the nation. The situation has only grown more dire since the Biden Administration announced the American Rescue Plan in mid-January. Renters have continued to accrue past-due rent at an alarmingly high rate. While the eviction moratorium has provided important protections for renters financially impacted by the pandemic, the moratorium has meant that millions of renters have accumulated significant arrears. Economists estimate that unpaid rent at the end of January 2021 totals $52 billion, which amounts to $5,600 for the average renter. “The $5 billion in emergency housing vouchers will help transition persons-at-risk and homeless persons to stable housing. Emergency rental assistance is not only vital to renters, but its impact on the economy and public health is far-reaching. The Senate must act swiftly to provide emergency rental assistance and prevent a wave of evictions and housing instability that will tragically disrupt the lives of millions of Americans.” |
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About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
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The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP)will redevelop the vacant Larimer School, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, into 35 affordable housing units. This project is part of HACP’s larger Larimer/East Liberty Choice Neighborhoods redevelopment plan.
The Otto Bremer Trust awarded a $100,000 grant and a $500,000 low-interest loan to the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA). MPHA will use the loan to support housing authority operations for its 6,000 public housing units and will use the grant to fund construction of the 16-unit Minnehaha Townhomes, slated to open in 2019.
The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles alongside partner Meta Housing Corporation, opened El Segundo Apartments and 127th Street Apartments in Harbor Gateway, two new communities offering a combined 160 units of permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless families and individuals.
The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA), partner Red Eye, Inc., and celebrity guests celebrated the opening of the Watts Empowerment Center Sports Complex at HACLA’s Imperial Courts community with basketball games, soccer matches, a slam dunk contest, and other activities.
Fort Worth Housing Solutions (FWHS)President Mary-Margaret Lemons penned an op-ed in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about FWHS’s efforts to increase the city’s affordable housing options, such as their utilization of the RAD program.
From The Denverite:
The Denver Housing Authority is looking into new ways to increase the city’s housing stock. Its new apartment complex takes advantage of one option that’s been on the minds of Denverites: office-space conversions.
DHA announced last week that they renovated a former medical office building at 655 Broadway, turning the space into an affordable apartment building.
The nine-story building houses 96 affordable units for seniors and disabled individuals. There are also an additional 14 apartments that will be used to help transition unhoused patients from Denver Health into housing after their hospital stay.
The units range from studios to one-bedrooms with rents ranging from $950 to $1,250 with voucher and government assistance, depending on income eligibility requirements. DHA said the units will have a max area median income level of 60%. For an individual, 60% AMI is about $52,140. They also added that about 36 units will be rented out at 30% of a resident’s income.
DHA acquired the building from Denver Health in May 2020 for $5 million. The project then received $18 million in housing tax credits from Enterprise Housing Credit Investments, an affordable housing nonprofit.
Residents began moving in to the new complex on Tuesday.
“Adaptive re-use of this scale, and with the added layer of this being a historic building, is highly complex. This project demonstrates what is possible when so many partners — a housing authority, a public hospital, lenders, contractors, and many, many more — come together for the purpose of delivering high-quality affordable housing and of preserving an iconic structure,” DHA officials said.
Read The Denverite's article "Denver converts old office space on Broadway into 110 units of affordable housing."
From the Housing Authority of Baltimore City's press release:
McCormack Baron Salazar, in collaboration with its codeveloper, the Housing Authority of Baltimore City (HABC), proudly announces the financial closing and construction commencement of Phase III in the Perkins Homes Redevelopment. This pivotal phase involves the construction of two buildings, encompassing 152 mixed-income units, and marks a significant stride in revitalizing the Perkins, Somerset, and Oldtown (PSO) neighborhoods in Baltimore.
Perkins Phase III is part of the mixed-use, multi-phase community-wide redevelopment of the Perkins, Somerset, and Oldtown (PSO) neighborhoods and made possible by a joint award to the City of Baltimore and the Housing Authority of Baltimore of a federal $30 million Choice Neighborhood Implementation grant in 2018.
To win the federal award, HABC and its partners leveraged more than $540 million in committed funding and investments from public, private, and nonprofit partners. The demolition and redevelopment of the Perkins Homes, an obsolete 629-unit public housing development built in 1942, is at the heart of the PSO effort.
Phase III is funded by $3.5 million from Maryland’s Community Development Administration, $8.5 million in ARPA funds from the City of Baltimore and an additional $4.5 million from Baltimore’s Department of Housing and Community Development. Furthermore, as part of the PSO Transformation Plan, the project has been awarded $2.4 million in Choice Neighborhood grant funds.
HABC Executive Director, Janet Abrahams, said, "The significant investment in the PSO project, highlighted by the recently awarded $10 million in supplemental CNI funds from HUD, magnifies the impact of this initiative on Baltimore's redevelopment. Phase III is a crucial component to achieving our overarching goal of fostering a sustainable, mixed-income community."
The total PSO redevelopment includes one-for-one replacement of the Perkins public housing units interspersed with workforce and market rate units throughout the community. A range of housing types will replace the homogeneous public housing community with a mix of replacement public housing units, additional affordable (utilizing Low Income Housing Tax Credits), and market-rate rental housing. All units will be indistinguishable with identical finishes and access to community amenities, including a fitness
center, community spaces, and security. Urban Strategies, Inc. will continue to provide comprehensive supportive services, embracing a holistic approach to community development.
"The start of Phase III is a significant milestone in reshaping Perkins. It's a testament to our commitment to building more than just structures, but an inclusive community where all families and children can thrive. As construction gets underway, we could not be more pleased to work with Kevin Johnson and his Commercial Construction Group team. Through our work and partnership with HABC, we're actively contributing to a brighter future for Baltimore," said Vincent Bennett, Chief Executive Officer of McCormack Baron Salazar.
From Fox 19 News Cincinnati:
A new mixed-income development in Pendleton is now welcoming residents.
The ribbon on the Bennett Point housing project was cut Thursday after two years of construction.
“The impact of this grand opening is enormous. Let me say that again, the impact of this grand opening is enormous,” declared LaVerne Mitchell with Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority.
Construction on the $21 million project started in July 2022.
Bennett Point consists of two buildings that house 56 apartment homes. Nineteen of the units are already rented.
More than 85% of the units will be offered at rents attainable to those earning 60% of the area median income.
“This again represents one of those investments that’s made not just in the infrastructure and the shell of a building, but in the quality, the lives, the legacy and the future of the individuals who will occupy these units,” said Anthony Forte with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The project was made possible thanks to public and private partnerships involving both the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority.
From the Santa Clara County Housing Authority's press release:
The Santa Clara County Housing Authority is pleased to announce a significant milestone in its efforts to preserve and improve the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park, in Palo Alto, CA. The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) issued the first-ever round of awards from a pioneering state program, called the Manufactured Housing Opportunity & Revitalization Program (MORE), which is designed to improve health and safety conditions at mobile homes parks across California.
“This is a big win for our community. It proves that collaboration really can be the key to success,” said Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian, who championed the County/City/Housing Authority partnership to “Save the Buena Vista” in 2017. “From the beginning, the Housing Authority and their team have been determined to ensure that Buena Vista remains an affordable community in a great neighborhood and school district. I am really gratified by this award from the state, which will let us preserve and improve this very special neighborhood.”
The Santa Clara County Housing Authority received the largest funding award through the MORE Program of all 25 projects throughout the state for Buena Vista Mobile Home Park in the City of Palo Alto, totaling $24,595,646. The Housing Authority previously received a grant of $5 million from the State of California’s CalHome program which enables low- and very low-income households to become or remain homeowners.
“Mobile home parks are a critical resource for providing low-income Californians the security of homeownership, but a lack of economic resources too often allows mobile homes and park infrastructure to fall into disrepair,” said HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez. “I am grateful that nearly $30 million in funding through HCD’s new MORE Program and CalHome can help hundreds of residents at Buena Vista start fresh in new homes with up-to-date infrastructure and amenities.”
Currently, Buena Vista has over 260 residents, including 67 children and 52 seniors. Originally built in the 1920s as an “auto camp” for visitors along El Camino Real, in the 1950s it evolved into a mobile home park. Over the years, Buena Vista has naturally grown into affordable housing for low-income families, with a mix of both renters and homeowners who own their own mobile home.
The Housing Authority, along with the City of Palo Alto and the County of Santa Clara, purchased the property in 2017 and has since worked diligently to preserve the affordable housing in one of the most cost-prohibitive and highly resourced cities in the Bay Area. This funding award is a significant milestone in the redevelopment of the community, whereby a bulk of Buena Vista will remain a mobile home park with brand-new, high-quality mobile homes for all existing homeowners, and carving out a portion of the property to become a rental apartment building serving both existing renters, as well as additional income-qualified renters in the community.
Housing Authority Executive Director, Preston Prince, says “In my 30 plus years of experience building affordable housing, this has been one of the most complicated deals I’ve ever been part of, because of the aging infrastructure, the replacement of the current mobile homes, and the lack of resources available to preserve mobile home parks. We are thrilled to receive this MORE award, this unique program gets us one step closer to providing these residents with a new community and opportunities they very much deserve.”
“The state funding award, coupled with City, County and Housing Authority investment will advance this important affordable housing project preserving and rehabilitating the mobile home spaces at Buena Vista for the Buena Vista community and Palo Alto residents,” said Lydia Kou, Palo Alto mayor. “The City has been and continues to be a leader in producing and preserving affordable housing in Santa Clara County using a thoughtful step ladder approach that addresses the needs within the Palo Alto community. Buena Vista has always been a tight-knit affordable housing community within our city, and we are committed to supporting Buena Vista families thrive here in Palo Alto.”
This substantial grant comes as a testament to the Housing Authority's dedication to ensuring the availability of affordable housing and homeownership options, particularly in high-demand areas like Palo Alto. The grant will enable the Housing Authority to undertake comprehensive improvements, addressing essential infrastructure needs, replacing aged and outdated homes, enhancing community amenities, and implementing sustainable and energy-efficient practices. The funding will play a pivotal role in the preservation and improvement of the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park, benefiting both current and future residents.
“As a resident of Buena Vista for over 20 years, I am ecstatic about what's to come” says Park resident Melodie Cheney, “For years, we have been advocating for the improvement of the Park and I feel like it's finally happening, and I am very thankful to the Housing Authority for providing us support through this process and making our dreams a reality.”
From the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority's press release:
Leaders of the Columbus Housing Enterprise (CHE) and the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) announced today they have acquired Cabot Cove Apartments, a 288-unit multi-family affordable housing development located in Hilliard, for $21.6 million.
Columbus Housing Enterprise is a nonprofit organization committed to preserving affordable housing in central Ohio through the philanthropic commitment of leaders in the private sector.
The Cabot Cove transaction, CHE’s second project with CMHA, was conceived by local business and civic leaders Don Kelley and Robert Weiler, along with their families, and will ensure the apartment complex will remain affordable for lower-wage earning families, senior citizens and people with disabilities for the next 75 years.
“This acquisition is another step forward in our game-changing strategy to combine the generosity of two successful and community-minded families with a new nonprofit acting as a steward for the preservation of quality existing unsubsidized affordable housing,” said CHE Board Chair Hal Keller.
“We credit CMHA’s leadership and vision for working with us because rents at Cabot Cove would continue to soar as they are across central Ohio without this agreement,” Keller said. “We also believe this model can be replicated as other multifamily property owners follow the lead of the Weiler and Kelley families.”