Healthy homes initiative project
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A healthy and safe community is vital for the overall quality and economic stability of any city. To maintain the health and attractiveness of our communities, we must rebuild, enhance, restore and alleviate sickness in our neighborhoods. A major objective of many neighborhood revitalization programs is to increase home ownership to help stabilize neighborhoods and strengthen communities. It creates important local and individual incentives for maintaining and improving private property and public spaces. Local nonprofit community development corporations spearhead the revitalization of distressed communities.
The Lemoyne-Owen College area was faced with the challenge of a deteriorating community. To solve this problem, LeMoyne-Owen College Community Development Corporation (LOCCDC) was re- established in 1989 to institutionalize Lemoyne-Owen College's commitment to its community. Since its establishment, LOCCDC has been recognized as a key mechanism for community development and outreach. This organization has been successful in various areas, including Micro Lending, Business and Economic Development and Housing.
LOCCDC started the Housing component in 1999 when it received its first CHDO grant. Since then, it has built 10 new single homes and rehabilitated 5 single homes using its "Build a Block" infill program.
LOCCDC started the Healthy Homes Initiative program in 2004 to join the nation in its effort to eliminate the home lead poisoning especially in children under the age of six years by the year 2010 while producing affordable homes for sale to low income single families. LOCCDC aims to complete 20 such projects by the turn of the decade.
This paper is a demonstration of how LOCCDC conducted the first piece of the Healthy Homes Initiative Project with an outline of community needs assessment, the problem statement, project design, project implementation and project monitoring and implementation process. (Author abstract)