On Fri, Jun 27, 2008 at 10:20 PM, James Taylor <jtaylor@enn.org> wrote:

Dear Friends,

It is with great pleasure that we are given the privilege to announce significant and major advancements on the Near Eastside's Great Indy Neighborhoods Initiative's (GINI) Quality of Life Plan (QOL).  This week has been one of many remarkable events,

On the home ownership incubator, we confirmed the biggest piece of funding from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority with an award of rental housing tax credits.  This award will mean over $2 million in funding to advance this project. 

Along with additional funding support from the City via the Indianapolis Housing Trust Fund and the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership we are getting very close to making this project a reality.  The idea for this effort was born from discussions of neighborhood residents, who hoped and worried that those who lived in our most desperate neighborhoods in the worst of times would have an opportunity to be given full benefit of our work when it becomes the best of times.  As one resident bluntly said, "We don't want to be simply pushing the poor families of our neighborhood around". The Home Ownership Incubator is a deliberate effort to design a pipeline of potential home buyers for major housing redevelopment plans in these neighborhoods that will be coming soon.  In total, we have nearly $2.2 million secured to forward this effort of creating this ladder of opportunity. 

The Indianapolis Housing Trust Fund has also agreed to fund the work of the Englewood Community Development Corporation designed to revitalize a whole neighborhood block surrounding their Church to further the work of the Women in Motion Program and their efforts to house some of the most vulnerable members of our neighborhood.

And this very same day, Congressman Carson announced that $200,000 in funding has been included in the U.S. House of Representative's version of the federal budget to support services to those living in the home ownership incubator and the Englewood project. 

Just the day before this, JPMorgan Chase Foundation announced a grant of $235,000 for our neighborhood.  This grant will help our neighborhood in creating a Center for Working Families; continue the School community partnership at School 14 and expand it to School 54: provide funding for Indy-east Asset Development to build capacity to lead this major housing effort; support the Save, Learn and Earn Free Tax Service which served over 3,600 taxpayers last year in securing over $3.9 million in federal refunds; and, lastly, provide funding for the Feast of Lanterns, which is the keystone community event and gathering for our neighborhood,  In addition to Chase's support of the Center for Working Families, LISC, Fairbanks Foundation and the Annie E. Casey Foundation have all stepped up with additional funding and support totaling nearly $100,000 to support this important neighborhood priority.

Simply said; WOW!

And stay tuned for another grant announcement in support of the work of Indy-east Asset Development to come at the end of July.

Beyond the specifics, this means over $3,100,000 in funding that is directly related to the plan that the neighborhood developed as they envisioned a vibrant future for the near eastside.  Frankly, it is because neighborhood residents cared and turned out in record numbers and participated in the GINI process that this was made possible.  I know our Center and others are merely the instruments that the hope and vision of our neighbors are being made possible.  And with the added light that the 2012 Super Bowl brings to our work, we will together achieve many of the audacious dreams that others thought were beyond our grasp.

Hang on folks, our work will be difficult ahead, but with your patience and perseverance many great things will be realized.  And I know we will need all of you to play a role, as it is the strength of our neighborhood leadership that made this and much more possible.  Have a great weekend!!

James

James E. Taylor

Executive Director

John H. Boner Community Center

2236 East 10th Street

Indianapolis, Indiana 46201

317•633•8210 (v)

317•633•3006 (f)

www.enn.org

 

"You can judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him."