Housing Authority of Savannah

HUD NEWS
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Shaun Donovan, Secretary
Office of Public Affairs, Washington, DC 20410

HUD No. 12-003                                                                                                         FOR RELEASE
Donna White                                                                                                               Tuesday  
202-708-0685                                                                                                              January 10, 2012        
http://www.hud.gov/news/index.cfm

HUD AWARDS $3.6 MILLION IN CHOICE NEIGHBORHOODS PLANNING GRANTS
13 communities awarded grants to begin grassroots efforts to revitalize housing, communities     

WASHINGTON – U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan announced today that 13 communities across the U.S. will receive $3.6 million in Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants. (See attached list and project summary for this all of the grantees.)

 “All across the country, local planners are serious about rolling up their sleeves to transform distressed neighborhoods into choice neighborhoods,” said Donovan.   “These communities can now begin the comprehensive planning needed to turn distressed housing and long-neglected neighborhoods into viable and sustainable mixed-income communities that support positive outcome for families.”

Building on nearly 20 years of success through HUD’s HOPE VI Program, Choice Neighborhoods links housing improvements with a wider variety of public services including schools, public transit and employment opportunities. The program is a centerpiece of the Obama Administration’s interagency Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, a collaboration between HUD and the Departments of Education, Justice, Treasury and Health and Human Services. With support from the White House Domestic Policy Council and White House Office of Urban Affairs, the interagency partnership supports local solutions for sustainable, mixed-income neighborhoods with the affordable housing, safe streets and good schools all families need.

As a result of partnerships like these, the Obama Administration is making it easier for local leaders who are working to redevelop neighborhoods to also access support for cradle-to-career educational programs through the Education Department’s Promise Neighborhoods initiative, public safety strategies through the Justice Department, and community health center improvements through the Department of Health and Human Services.

HUD received 71 submissions for FY 2011 Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants from communities across the U.S.  Successful applicants demonstrated their intent to transform neighborhoods while leveraging outside investments and other federal dollars to plan for high-quality public schools, outstanding education and early learning programs, public assets, public transportation, and improved access to jobs and well-functioning services. HUD is focused on directing resources to address three core goals – housing, people and neighborhoods. 

The communities awarded the planning grants announced today will build the capacity needed to undertake a successful neighborhood transformation and create a choice neighborhood.  These grants enable communities to create a comprehensive Transformation Plan, or road map, to transform distressed public and/or assisted housing within a distressed community.  This Federal support provides a significant incentive for the local community to take critical steps to create viable neighborhood transformation. 

Recently, HUD announced Partner.HUD.gov, an innovative online platform to spotlight comprehensive information about grantees and top-tier applicants with the hope that others will consider providing resources. This web portal is intended to provide information funders and other local stakeholders can use to support applications that HUD deemed promising, but was unable to fund.  The site also offers communities greater access to similar work happening around the country and provides best-practice models that might help shape their efforts. Today’s 2011 Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grant recipients and the eight competitive runners-up, will be featured on Partner.HUD.gov next week.

Congress approved the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative with the passage of HUD’s FY 2010 budget, and in FY 2011 authorized HUD to use $65 million to provide competitive grants to assist in the transformation, rehabilitation and preservation of public housing and privately owned HUD-assisted housing.  Congress recently appropriated $120 million for Fiscal Year 2012. Choice Neighborhoods builds on the successes and lessons of HUD’s HOPE VI program and widens the traditional pool of eligible applicants beyond public housing authorities to include local governments, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit developers (who apply jointly with a public entity).

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HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and  transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and http://espanol.hud.gov.  You can also follow HUD on twitter @HUDnews, on facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD’s News Listserv

FY 2011 Choice Neighborhood Planning Grantees

A NEW BEGINNING .... The Robert Hitch Village demolition has begun. Take a look at this footage provided by SavannahNow.com

Stimulus Dollars at Work in
Housing Authority of Savannah Neighborhoods

The Housing Authority of Savannah has been awarded a total of more than $8.8 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which was signed into law on February 17, 2009. HAS received $5.3 million in ARRA funding in February 2009 as part of its proportional share of the $3 billion in stimulus funding made available to housing authorities across the U.S. The remaining $3.5 million in ARRA funding received by the agency was secured through a competitive process under the category of “Creating Energy Efficient and Green Communities.” All of the ARRA funds received were made available for Public Housing capital projects. The progress being made on projects funded by those dollars is documented below.

ROBERT HITCH VILLAGE
Robert Hitch Village is currently one of HAS’s oldest public housing communities at over 55 years old. Demolition, funded through Recovery Act dollars, will make way for a new mixed-finance community on the border of the nation’s largest landmark historic district. A contract was awarded in February 2010 and work is about to begin in the coming weeks.
EXPECTED COMPLETION:  September 2010

PICKENS PATTERSON TERRACE
This 76-unit development on Savannah’s Southside will undergo a major rehabilitation to include Roof Replacement, HVAC Installation, new Water Heaters, Windows and Security Screens, and Bathroom Exhaust Fans. A kitchen upgrade in all units will include new Cabinets, Countertops, Sinks, and Range Hoods. Units will also receive dryer hookups and utility closet doors, increasing marketability. Work began in November 2009 and is currently underway.
EXPECTED COMPLETION:  November 2010

Work is expected to begin in the following neighborhoods very soon!

SIMON FRAZIER HOMES &
FRED WESSELS HOMES
The 236-unit Simon Frazier Homes, located on Savannah’s Westside and the 250-unit Fred Wessels Homes, located off of E. Broad Street bordering downtown, received stimulus funding through the competitive category of “Creating Energy Efficient and Green Communities.” HAS was one of only two public housing authorities in the state of Georgia to receive a competitive ARRA grant.

The energy efficiency retrofits and upgrades are expected to reduce water consumption and energy usage by half, resulting in costs savings to residents. The work in both neighborhoods will include a Green Operations Plan, Green Project Analysis, Compact Fluorescent Bulbs, Showerheads, Toilets, Water Heaters, Air Sealing Measures, Attic/Insulation, Windows, HVAC (indoor and outdoor).

SINGLE FAMILY HOMES
This small 60-unit community off of Skidaway Road will receive extensive renovation in hopes of marketing the community for possible homeownership in coming years. Stimulus dollars will begin this effort with Roof Replacement, Window Replacement, new Screen Doors and Rear Exterior Doors. Repair work will be done on the Ceilings and Floors of all units. Exterior work on the units will include pressure washing, new Fiber Cement Siding, Gutters and Downspouts. The site itself will receive Privacy Fencing and Landscaping for erosion control and aesthetic appeal.

HORACE STILLWELL TOWERS
HAS’s 211-unit high rise tower on Waters Avenue that is designated for the elderly and persons with disabilities will undergo extensive work to community areas for its residents. The hallways of all twenty floors will receive new flooring and cove base. The walls of the hallways will have wallpaper removed and new paint, along with guard rails. On the interior of the units, new open face electrical heaters and door hardware replacement will be included in the renovation work. The Golden Age Community Center on the ground floor will receive a kitchen and bathroom upgrade, along with the installation of automatic doors. Outside, the parking lot will be repaired with a new overlay treatment, and outdoor sitting area with gazebo will be constructed.

EDGAR BLACKSHEAR HOMES
In 2008, these 100 units off of Wheaton Street underwent a major renovation. Stimulus funding will allow final details on these units of new doors and bathroom exhaust fans, a ceiling insulation upgrade and mold inhibitor treatment.

Record Numbers Gather at Job Fair for the
Demolition of Robert Hitch Village

                
 As crowds waited for President Obama’s arrival on the morning of Tuesday, March 2nd, another crowd was gathering across town at the Management Office of the soon to be demolished Robert Hitch Village. Approximately 600 job seekers lined up outside in the cold and rain for over two hours for the chance to fill out a questionnaire for open employment opportunities with D.H. Griffin Wrecking Co., Inc., the contractor hired by HAS to demolish the 337 units in Robert Hitch Village.
The demolition of the Housing Authority of Savannah’s second oldest neighborhood is one of seven projects being funded through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) of 2009. Job creation and retention was one of the primary goals of the Recovery Act, and one of the main messages President Obama brought during his visit to Savannah, his second stop on his “White House to Main Street Tour.” This message could not be more pertinent or the need for jobs more evident than by the eager crowd lining up for a chance to go to work on this Recovery Act funded project.
The Housing Authority of Savannah has required any company hired to do work on an ARRA funded project to create employment opportunities for public housing residents and low-income Savannahians looking for work. HAS has a goal of 30% of the workforce on these projects to be new hires who would not have a job without the opportunity created through the Recovery Act. The Housing Authority of Savannah is excited in seeing these stimulus dollars out on the streets in HAS neighborhoods, helping residents and the Savannah community, as a whole.
Demolition work is expected to begin in Hitch Village by the end of March with an expected completion date of September 2010.
  

The Housing Authority of Savannah and the Revolutionary War

The Housing Authority of Savannah is working with the Coastal Heritage Society in an archaeological search to document the Revolutionary War battle which took place in Savannah, Georgia on October 9, 1779.

Residents of the second oldest neighborhood in public housing, Yamacraw Village, live in the heart of an American Revolution battlefield.  Non-invasive Ground Penetrating radar will be conducted in the area of Zubly and Fahm streets in search of evidence of the battle.  The work will not impact residents or disturb the ground.

The Housing Authority of Savannah is very excited about the prospect that artifacts and evidence of another fort from the Battle of Savannah might be found.  We will keep you updated as the work continues.

HAS Receives $3.4 Million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Competitive Grant

On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The Recovery Act included a $4 billion appropriation of Capital Funds for public housing agencies. $3 billion was appropriated to agencies through formula funds and $1 billion was to be distributed through a competitive process.

The Housing Authority of Savannah received $5.3 million in formula Capital Funding in March of 2009. HAS applied for competive funding under the Category of "Creation of an Energy Efficient, Green Community" in July. HAS is pleased to announce that it has received $3.4 Million under this competive category.

The two neighborhoods to receive the funding are Fred Wessels Homes ($1,757,500) and Simon Frazier Homes ($1,664,120).

Through this new funding, HAS is hoping to significantly reduce operating costs related to energy use and water consumption in these two neighborhoods. Water use is anticipated to be reduced by 55% and energy use by 30%, significantly reducing monthly operating expenses for residents. The two Competitive Capital Fund grants will be used to moderately rehabilitate Fred Wessels Homes and Simon Frazier Homes in an energy and water efficient manner. These funds will be used for the following activities:

Energy efficient retrofits:

Reducing energy consumption in Fred Wessels Homes will focus on two primary areas:
1) Preventing the infiltration of undesired air and heat through improvements to the building envelope and
2) Reducing energy consumption of lighting, HVAC and water heating.

To reduce infiltration of undesired air and heat, weatherization retrofits will include replacement of single pane glass windows with Low-E double pane insulated windows with foam sealing around the perimeter. Windows will have a U-value and solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) of <.35. Attic insulation will be increased to R-38 from existing conditions of roughly R-11 by blowing in low-emitting cellulose insulation over the existing fiberglass batts. Additionally, blower door testing will be performed to identify air leaks in the building envelope which will then be sealed with spray foam and/or low-VOC caulk.

Energy conservation retrofits will include replacing the standard incandescent type lighting fixtures with compact fluorescent fixtures. This will cut lighting loads (and the associated heat gains) by nearly 70%. Additionally, the existing air source heat pumps will be replaced with 14 SEER heat pumps with variable speed air handlers. Aged water heaters will be replaced with high efficiency (EF >.92) water heaters.

Water conservation retrofits:

All toilets, lavatory faucets and showerheads will be replaced with highly water efficient fixtures.

All existing 4 gpf toilets will be replaced with dual flush (0.8/1.6 gpf) toilets. Lavatory sink fixtures currently using 2.5 gpm aerators will be replaced with bathroom sink fixtures with 1.0 gpm energy efficient aerators. Finally existing 2.5+ gpm shower heads will be replaced with 1.6 gpm shower heads.

These retrofits will result in energy savings of 37.5% based on 70% for energy and 30% for water conservation. 

Sustainable Fellwood is a 27-acre site located on Bay Street, just west of Savannah’s Historic District.  Initially part of the southeast’s magnificent longleaf pine forest, then agricultural land, and finally the site of Savannah’s and Georgia’s first housing project, Sustainable Fellwood is envisioned as a $50 million mixed-use development encompassing 220 Public/Affordable Housing Units (in several phases), 100 Senior Housing Units, 10 single family homeowner units, and potential retail, medical, and technical space. Follow our progress: http://www.sustainablefellwood.com

HAS RECEIVES ADDITIONAL FUNDING

The Housing Authority of Savannah is pleased to announce that it will be receiving $5.3 million under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. This stimulus money has been awarded to the HAS Capital Fund Program for capital improvements and modernization projects in our communities.

The Housing Authority of Savannah has also been awarded $1.1 million under the Continuum of Care (CoC) Homeless Assistance Program. HAS submitted an application last year through the 2008 McKinney-Vento homeless assistance competition and is pleased to announce that HAS was selected to receive funding.

ATTENTION HAS RESIDENTS – PARKING PROCEDURES

All residents who own vehicles should now have registered their vehicles with their management office and received a mirror hang tag. The HAS hang tag must be hung from the rearview mirror of ALL vehicles when parked on HAS property. If you, the resident, or your guest, do not have your hang tag displayed and/or are illegally parked (on the grass; on the sidewalk; blocking another vehicle; an abandoned vehicle, etc.), Management will issue a warning. A green parking violation sticker will be placed on the driver’s side window of the illegally parked vehicle and a $75 fine will be issued. If the illegally parked or derelict/abandoned vehicle is not moved or hang tag is not displayed within 24 hours, the vehicle will be towed at the owner’s expense.

These parking rules have been put in place for the safety and benefit of all in the community. If you have any questions about parking procedures, please contact the management staff.

New Parking Regulations

Marcus Stubbs Tower

Out with the old ... in with the new !!

This land mark since the 1970's was removed to make way for a community park for all to enjoy. This addition and many other area enhancements are part of the ongoing HOPE VI development in the Benjamin van Clark neighborhood.

P.O. Box 1027 Savannah, Georgia  31402
TEL: 912-651-6410   FAX (912) 651-6408
NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release
Date: January 28, 2007

$600,000 grant a huge boost for wireless project

The City of Savannah and its partners stood together today and announced plans for an ambitious project just getting started whose goal would be to extend affordable wireless Internet access to disadvantaged neighborhoods along the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

"This is a great day for the City of Savannah," Mayor Otis Johnson said. "I am very pleased because this will begin to bridge the digital divide that exists today."

The wireless Internet project is a partnership involving the City, SDRA, the Housing Authority of Savannah, the Creative Coast, Savannah Technical College and the Equal Opportunity Authority. The partnership will install wireless infrastructure along the MLK Corridor from Bay Street to Gwinnett, then create a public-private partnership with an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to give free-, reduced-rate, and market-rate Internet access to residents, businesses and institutions along the corridor.

Though the partnerships have yet to be formalized, and many details still need to be worked out, the current plan is for institutional partners to purchase large blocks of Internet accounts from the ISP, which would keep costs low. Those partners could then offer free or reduced-rate Internet to residents along the corridor. As currently envisioned, the Housing Authority of Savannah would not purchase accounts, but would assist the project by helping it gain access to its properties along the corridor.  

The project got a huge boost this week when the Georgia Technology Authority (GTA) awarded the City of Savannah a $600,000 grant to help construct the infrastructure and programming for the MLK Wireless Project.

This new model of municipal WIFI is unique in the United States, and puts Savannah at the forefront of technology services to local populations. It is the partnership's belief that affordable, reliable Internet access will soon be as important as access to schools and libraries. The network will also enhance government services that rely on wireless technology, such as surveillance cameras, police mobile data terminals and inspections operations.

For more information, contact the Public Information Office at 651-6410.  

Get the Link-up – now !!!!!
Do you feel out of touch with the rest of the world? Can’t afford to pay the telephone installation costs? Get the Link-Up!!!!! Link-Up Georgia is a program that assists with the cost of having at telephone installed. AT&T credits 100% of installation costs for its Link-Up subscribers, while other companies provide a 50% credit up to $30. Additionally, you may be eligible to receive a Lifeline Assistance monthly credit of up to $13.50 on your local service telephone bill.

You may be eligible for help if you currently receive benefits under one of the following programs:

• Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA)
• Food Stamps
• Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
• Medicaid
• Senior citizen low-income discount plan offered by the local gas or power company
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Temporary Assistance to needy Families (TANF) Contact your local telephone company (or in the case of new service, the company from which you would like to receive telephone service) to see if these programs are available, for more details or to sign up to receive the benefits.

For more information please use the following link: http://www.psc.state.ga.us