Hello all, I sent that last email before adding the number of years Walnut Way has been working in Lindsay Heights, which I added below (in the event you forward this idea to the Taskforce, please use the edited version below).

 

Sorry for the mix up.

 

Thanks, Dave.

 

Linda and Joanna~

 

I�m not sure who to direct this email to, so I�ve included you both. Per the request of Deborah Blanks, I would like to submit one last minute idea for the Taskforce and the CDBG funds reserved for its activities.

 

Lindsay Heights Foreclosure Renovation Project

 

The project is administered directly by one of SDC�s community partners: Walnut Way Conservation Corp. Walnut Way is the lead agency for the Zilber Neighborhood Initiative in Lindsay Heights and has been serving that neighborhood for over 13 years. As part of the Zilber Neighborhood model, the residents of Lindsay Heights lead a community planning initiative that seeks to redevelop the neighborhood from the bottom up. One of the major components of this plan is to increase the quality and quantity of housing in the neighborhood. Following the plan�s completion in 2009, SDC worked with Walnut Way and the Zilber Family Foundation to implement the housing component. This project has already yielded the historic renovation of 8 housing units in the neighborhood that were in foreclosure�with 2 additional units presently undergoing renovation. The long-term goal of the project is to stabilize the housing market in Lindsay Heights�concentrating on the high level of foreclosed properties. The project has the following characteristics:

 

1. Over 70% of subcontractors utilized on the project are men of color that reside within this central city neighborhood;
2. The project uses transitional job placements from SDC to assist with renovations and receive on-the-job training by shadowing skilled craftsmen;
3. Properties are identified on strategic blocks that are primed for stabilization. Renovations are concentrated to create synergy. Once a foothold is established, future phases of development will expand concentrically;
4. Properties are renovated for both rental and home ownership opportunities per the neighborhood redevelopment plan;
5. Renovations focus on historic preservation, craftsmanship, and energy efficiency;
6. The project has a diverse revenue source including funding from the City of Milwaukee�s CHDO program, WE Energies, Zilber Family Foundation, Social Development Commission, Walnut Way, Wells Fargo, and property equity;
7. The project�s long-term strategy is to establish a strong foundation of properties that provide enough equity for self-sustaining revenue;
8. The project�s manager, Larry Adams, is co-founder of Walnut Way and has 38 years of experience renovating properties in Milwaukee�s central city.

 

How Taskforce Funds could be used on this Project: This initiative is currently in conversations with the City of Milwaukee to renovate specific foreclosed properties on adjacent blocks on N 16^th Street. With funding from the Taskforce, Walnut Way could renovate these properties using subcontractors from the Lindsay Heights neighborhood that are men of color. As an additional benefit, the City of Milwaukee could reduce its inventory of foreclosed properties.

 

If anyone on the Taskforce would like more information, I can provide it and/or have the project�s manager Larry Adams speak to the group.

 

Thanks,

 

 

The City of Milwaukee is subject to Wisconsin Statutes related to public
records.  Unless otherwise exempted from the public records law,
senders and receivers of City of Milwaukee e-mail should presume that e-mail is subject
to release upon request, and is subject to state records retention
requirements.  See City of Milwaukee full e-mail disclaimer at
www.milwaukee.gov/email_disclaimer