Heartland Alliance Sets New Standards in CHA’s Mixed Income Communities

October 10, 2007

Public housing. In many metropolitan areas, public housing has become high-rise blemishes that isolate the unemployed and the working poor, disproportionately marginalizing people of color. The impact is far-reaching — abandoned and deteriorated properties, high crime, family breakdown, and poorly performing schools.

But in Chicago, the bleak high-rise towers are tumbling down and a new model for public housing is taking shape. The Chicago Housing Authority's "Plan for Transformation" is under way, integrating residents from across the economic spectrum. Heartland Alliance's housing subsidiary is a major real estate developer as the CHA seeks to redefine public housing.

"Heartland Alliance's approach sets us apart," says Andy Geer, executive director of Heartland Alliance's housing subsidiary. Where the Adams, Brooks, Loomis, and Abbott (ABLA) housing projects once stood, a massive development of 2,441 mixed-income residences — called Roosevelt Square — is being created over six phases of construction.  The new buildings will include 1,090 rental properties for low-income families and qualified public housing residents.

Recognizing What Works

Unlike many other affordable housing developers, Heartland Alliance addresses housing on multiple levels, going beyond simply the bricks and mortar.

"We have a deeper recognition of the need for support services to the individuals and families who move into our residences. A lot of companies wanted the development work at Roosevelt Square, but our housing group does the financing, the development, the management, and delivers the expertise of agencies within Heartland Alliance to provide the social and job services that the others just don't have," Geer explains. "Heartland Alliance leverages our experience on the human side to make the housing side work better."

The work of Heartland Alliance and real estate partners at Roosevelt Square has been widely recognized. The project won the Chicago Neighborhood Development Award's (CNDA) Non-Profit Neighborhood Development Group of the Year in 2006. Heartland Alliance has had "a tremendous impact in the arena of supportive housing for individuals and families," the CNDA declared.

With the first phase of the project completed and the second phase of 445 units launched this July, Geer looks forward to taking Heartland Alliance's involvement at Roosevelt Square to an even higher level.

Advocates for Residents

"We're advocating for resident services," he says. "We were instrumental in getting CHA to recognize the need for meeting with residents before they move into their homes so they would be prepared to maintain their homes. We follow our residents for their first year of residency, providing support to ensure their housing success. We're hoping to develop a new community center for tenants. It's about building a community and developing a deeper understanding of our mission."

Darla Riley is a Roosevelt Square resident. A former tenant at ABLA, she is thrilled with her new home.

"It's marvelous here. It's neat, clean, well kept. I got good neighbors — neighbors who look out for each other," she says. "I met Heartland Alliance in the summer of 2005, and Heartland Alliance has been on my side ever since. Whatever you need, there's a program at Heartland Alliance that's going to help."

A Reputation for Excellence

Heartland Alliance's track record in housing has gained notice from local, state, and regional public officials. Milwaukee, which has struggled to provide quality housing for homeless and mentally ill people, has tapped into Heartland Alliance's expertise: in 2008, Heartland Alliance will begin development of a new supportive housing project in Milwaukee.

"We're exporting the knowledge that we've gained from our experience here," Geer says. "People need to know, if you have a high standard for what you're doing, if you design it well, build it well, and manage it well, you can have a success story too." 

Subscribe to RSS