Kelvin A. Jeremiah Salutes HUD Housing Secretary Marcia L. Fudge For Her Compassion and Staunch Commitment to Affordable and Fair Housing


Contact:

Nichole Tillman, [email protected]; 215-888-2869                                  


Philadelphia, PA. (March 14, 2024) –  Philadelphia Housing Authority President & CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah today expressed his deep gratitude for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Marcia L. Fudge’s deep compassion, and wide-ranging contributions to Philadelphia.

Marcia L. Fudge, the 18th HUD Secretary, announced her retirement this month.

Fudge made a number of trips to Philly during her tenure, including a visit in 2021 to attend the completion ceremony for the North Central Choice Neighborhood Initiative and a tour of PHA’s Workforce Development Center at Vaux Community Building in Sharswood.

“Secretary Fudge understands that high-quality, affordable and secure housing impacts mental and physical health, and provides access to well-paying jobs and vital community networks that attract essential resources and opportunities,” Jeremiah said. “As she transitions to a new chapter in her life, we want to take a moment to acknowledge her and thank her for believing in, and investing in, Philadelphia.”

In her visit to Philly in November, 2021, Secretary Fudge toured North Central Five, one of the transformative developments built  as part as PHA’s and the City of Philadelphia’s $30 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant from HUD.

“People who are now going to be living in these fine, fine homes grew up behind the starting line of life, never believing, never thinking that we would catch up, never believing that our children would have a real shot at having an opportunity to succeed, never believing that any of this would ever be ours,” Secretary Fudge told residents and dignitaries during that visit.  “So I thank all of those who made it happen because I know what it means. . . I know what it means to go to a place where people love you just for you, where nobody judges you. They just accept who you are. That is what these kinds of homes do for people every day.”

Jeremiah noted that PHA received its third Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant under Fudge – a $50 million grant that will help PHA transform the Bartram Village/Kingsessing neighborhoods, in consultation with residents and community leaders.

“Secretary Fudge, on behalf of our PHA Board of Commissioners, our residents, and our staff, we wish you all the best in your retirement,” Jeremiah said. “You and your exceptional team at HUD have provided our city with the funds to reimagine affordable housing and reinvigorate historically disadvantaged neighborhoods. Your longstanding commitment to equal opportunity, fair-housing and homeownership has changed many lives and revitalized many neighborhoods. God speed.”

PHA also extends a warm congratulations to Deputy Secretary Adrianne Todman, who, according to the White House, will serve as Acting Secretary of HUD.

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About the Philadelphia Housing Authority:

The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s mission is to open doors to affordable housing, economic opportunity, and safe sustainable communities to benefit Philadelphia residents with low incomes. To learn more visit www.pha.phila.gov.

Philadelphia Housing Authority Secures an Additional 100 HUD-VASH Vouchers to Combat Veteran Homelessness

Media Contact:
Nichole Tillman, 215-888-2869

(Philadelphia, PA – March 11, 2024)- The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) has received 100 additional HUD-VASH vouchers, valued at $746,196 annually, from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The vouchers will be used to provide at-risk veterans with housing.

“Veterans have served their country well, and it is a privilege for us to be able to serve even more of them with these additional vouchers,” said PHA President and CEO Kelvin Jeremiah, “Homeless and at-risk veterans need more than shelter. They need stable housing and, at times, critical support services to address their unique needs. Philadelphia has long had a goal of eliminating homelessness for its veterans, and these funds offer vital support.”

The HUD-VASH program, which merges rental assistance from HUD with case management and clinical services from the VA, has played a big role in PHA’s and the City’s ongoing efforts to eradicate homelessness among veterans. With the new vouchers, outreach can expand enabling PHA to serve a total of 930 veterans through the VASH program.

Under the HUD-VASH program, veterans facing homelessness are assessed by VA Medical Centers and referred to local housing agencies like PHA for voucher assistance. “We are committed to providing them with the resources and housing assistance they need to thrive,” Jeremiah said.


The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s mission is to open doors to affordable housing, economic opportunity and safe, sustainable communities to benefit Philadelphia residents with low incomes.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s 10-Year-Report

The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s 10-year-report

The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s 10-year-report chronicles its efforts to revitalize historically disadvantaged neighborhoods, grow its portfolio of modern, climate-friendly housing, and help residents become economically self-sufficient.

Click to read!

 

Philadelphia Housing Authority Makes Philadelphia a City of Choice and “Is Leading the Way,” a HUD official proclaims while visiting the City in 2023

Philadelphia Housing Authority Makes Philadelphia a City of Choice and “Is Leading the Way,” a HUD official proclaims while visiting the City in 2023

Contacts:

For PHA: Nichole Tillman, [email protected]; 215-888-2869                           

 Philadelphia, PA. (Dec. 31, 2023) ‑The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s (PHA) wide-ranging approaches to addressing blight, poverty, and insufficient housing yielded vast dividends in 2023, as it became the nation’s first and only  housing authority  to receive more than $110 million in the coveted Choice Neighborhoods Implementation (CNI) Grants  from  the U.S. Department of  Housing  and Urban Development (HUD) to revitalize three neglected neighborhoods.

“2023 represents another banner year for PHA and the people we are privileged to serve. I could not be prouder proud to work with a dedicated and committed team who work every day to provide housing opportunities to Philadelphians most in need while also providing pathways to social and economic mobility for families with low incomes,” said Kelvin A. Jeremiah, PHA’s President and CEO. “PHA has set a high standard by providing quality affordable housing to meet the needs of contemporary families even amid increasing unaffordable rents with a shrinking affordable rental market making the demand for PHA’s assistance even greater than ever before. PHA stands ready to meet this challenge and build on its already strong record of success, but we cannot do this important work alone: it requires coordinated strategy and an alignment of resources on the federal, state, and local levels to maximize affordable housing production while preserving the existing affordable housing stock.”

“PHA Is leading the way and has become a national model,” proclaimed Richard J. Monocchio Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Department of Housing and Urban Development while attending the Grand Opening of PHA 4A, a $27.2 million, 58-unit townhouse community in Sharswood neighborhood which benefited from the grant.

In 2014, PHA received $30 million to revitalize North Central Philadelphia into the City’s first Choice Neighborhood. In 2020, it received a $30 million CNI grant to transform Sharswood, and in 2023, a $50 million CNI grant to revitalize Bartram in Southwest Philadelphia. PHA also received a CNI Planning Grant of $500,000 to reimagine Yorktown and the Harrison low-rise buildings.

As part of its ongoing asset repositioning strategy, PHA rehabbed nearly 1,000 units during 2023 while 405 new units came online adding to its housing portfolio. In 2023, PHA continued to expand its affordable housing production efforts. In addition to the grand opening for Sharswood 4A, construction crews began work this year on Sharswood’s final PHA rental community, Sharswood 6A, with 65 rental housing units. Construction also began on Sharswood Crossing Phase III, a mixed-use development with 224, brand new, mixed-income homes with ground floor retail, community amenities, and robust on-site supportive services for families. Harrision Senior Towers, a newly rehabbed, 116 unit hi-rise that offers residents an affordable, comfortable, and secure living experience, also opened.

In other major 2023 achievements include:

  • PHA opened the Housing Choice (HCV) Waiting List for two weeks and accepted over 36,000 applications as part of its effort to expand housing opportunities, which resulted in 10,000 people being added to the waiting list through a lottery process. In April 2023, PHA began pulling applicants from the waiting list, and to date, has pulled over 2,000 applicants for processing. Of those who applied for the lottery, 91 percent of the applicants said they lived, work, or were offered a job in Philadelphia and nearly 65 percent indicated they were either homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
  • In collaboration with HUD, the City’s office of Homeless Services, PHA issued and housed 792 formerly unhoused individuals and families under the Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) program.
  • More than 700 new homeowners have been assisted through PHA’s Opening Doors to Affordable Homeownership Program since 2013, with 43 additional PHA residents becoming homeowners.
  • PHA achieved a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE)participation rate of 47% and a Women Business Enterprise (MBE) participation rate of 31%. Philadelphia businesses and organizations received 33.4% of the total PHA contracted procurement spend of $106.8 million.
  • In 2023, the 10th year for PhillySEEDS, PHA’s non-profit affiliate, it continued its significant service to PHA residents and program participants; and in 2024 it will be adding a fourth program to provide even more opportunities and options for PHA’s deserving community. With its three core programs, it awarded $273,000.00 to 71 scholarship recipients; $200,000 to 164 HCV Affordable Rental Security Deposit Matching Grant recipients; and $70,000 to 35 Homeownership Closing Cost Matching Grant recipients.
  • PHA’s Youth & Family Center, located at its headquarters, whose mission is to support residents in building strong, stable neighborhoods and positive family relationships, supported over 2,500 families through various programs, including: the early childhood education program, youth summer employment programs and the Kinship Care program.
  • Resident Programs and Partnerships department hosted hundreds of events to engage, empower and inform residents to become self-sufficient.
  • PHA has supported the growth of over 50 residents owned business within the public housing sphere. The Entrepreneurship fellowship program coaching and funding to those who want to see their dreams come to fruition.

 

PHA remains laser focused on its mission to open doors to affordable housing, economic opportunity, and safe sustainable communities to benefit Philadelphia residents with low incomes.

As we begin 2024, PHA will release its comprehensive asset repositioning strategy, which aims to preserve its existing affordable housing stock while expanding affordable housing production to meet the ever-growing demand for affordable housing.

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PHA Grand Opening for 58 Affordable Townhouses As Its Sharswood Choice Neighborhoods Transformation Nears Completion

PHA held a Grand Opening for a 58-unit townhouse community in Sharswood  that is among its final rental phases for the Sharswood Transformation. VIPs from across the city joined PHA President & CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah, including Crystal Robbins (center), a mother of five who is returing to Sharswood with her family. The new townhomes, known as Sharswood 4A, replace housing lost when PHA imploded Blumberg Towers, a crime-ridden public housing development in need of major repairs. 

 

Contact:

Nichole Tillman, [email protected]; 215-888-2869                                  

Some PHA Residents Will Get Modern-Style Housing and Supportive Services for the Holidays

Philadelphia, PA. – The Philadelphia Housing Authority is capping off a milestone year with the Grand Opening Celebration for 58 scattered-site townhouses located in the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Master Street, and the 2400 Block of Ingersoll Street.

The $27.2 million townhome community, known as PHA rental phase 4A, is among the final developments planned in Sharswood, a historically disadvantaged community where PHA-led developments have resulted in new capital investments, job-creating businesses, and community amenities such as a bank, a restored park and grocery.

The modern, spacious apartment homes are among the units that have replaced housing from the Blumberg Towers, a symbol of urban decay near Center City that was in need of costly repairs. The high-rise apartment buildings were imploded in 2016 as part of PHA’s 10-year, $500 million effort to transform the formerly redlined neighborhood.

The spacious new housing preserves affordability in a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood and has a community center where residents can socialize or use computers to advance at work or in school. In all, there will be 16 one-bedroom units; 10 two-bedroom units; 24 three-bedroom units; 7 four-bedroom units, and 1 five bedroom unit.

PHA’s Grand Opening Celebration welcomes back some residents who will be moving into new homes during the holiday season. They will live across the street from the Vaux Community Center, a PHA site that offers services to foster self-reliance including homeownership classes, career development training and support for entrepreneurs.

“Home for the holidays celebrates the fact that more children will now have safe places to study, and more adults will have spacious, decent housing that can accommodate their families, “said Kelvin A. Jeremiah, PHA President & CEO. “PHA, the residents, the City, HUD, and other stakeholders have transformed a severely distressed neighborhood into a walkable, livable, desirable community and ultimately a city of choice.”

“These 58 new townhomes are a tremendous addition to this neighborhood and a reminder of how far this area has come,” said Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. “Through its Sharswood project, PHA ensures diverse communities and low-income residents directly benefit from new developments—new homes, services, and businesses. I thank PHA for playing a key role in our city’s equitable and inclusive growth by increasing housing opportunities and preserving affordable housing.”

“There is no greater gift at this festive time of year than a warm home and a vibrant community,” said HUD Principal Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing Richard J. Monocchio. “We applaud Philadelphia Housing Authority and the community for creating these beautiful homes and we welcome the families that will soon be moving in. This is another promise kept for the stakeholders of the Sharswood Choice Neighborhood community transformation plan.”

Congressman Dwight Evans (PA-3) said, “I’m pleased to see another phase in the transformation of Sharswood! I helped PHA to secure $30 million in federal funding, leveraging over $225 million in investment, to revitalize the Sharswood-Blumberg neighborhood, and we are seeing positive results – not only the new housing but also other additions that meet community needs such as a bank, a restored park, and a grocery store. The projects that PHA and its partners are undertaking show that we CAN rebuild Philadelphia, block by block!”

“Today’s ceremony marks the end of an exciting year of progress on the Sharswood Blumberg Transformation Plan,” State Rep. Donna Bullock said. “These additional 58 units will be a huge addition to the community. The PHA, developers and the community have done a great job of collaborating to redesign the neighborhood as an affordable and attractive place to live.”

A few blocks away, construction crews have begun work on one of the final developments planned as part of the Sharswood Choice Neighborhoods Transformation. That development, known as PHA rental Phase 6A, is centered on a cluster of desolate blocks where empty lots had been used to discard trash and unwanted items. Included in this modern, new energy-efficient community will be 12 one-bedroom units, 22 two-bedroom units, 19 three-bedroom units, 11 four-bedroom units, and 1 five-bedroom unit. Construction is expected to be completed by next year.

In 2014, PHA also received $30 million to revitalize North Central Philadelphia into the City’s first Choice Neighborhood. It recently received a $50 million CNI grant to revitalize Bartram in Southwest Philly, making it the first housing authority in the country to win three highly prestigious CNI grants.

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About the Philadelphia Housing Authority:

The Philadelphia Housing Authority’s mission is to open doors to affordable housing, economic opportunity, and safe sustainable communities to benefit Philadelphia residents with low incomes. To learn more visit www.pha.phila.gov.

 

PHA Names Its Newest Sharswood Community Center after a Champion of Hope: Retiring Council President Darrell L. Clarke

PHA President & CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah and Council President Darrell L. Clarke shake hands during a ceremony announcing that PHA has named its newest community center in Sharwood after Clarke, who is retiring from Council this year. Clarke has been a champion for affordable housing for many decades, and a familiar face in the neighborhood.

 

Contacts:

For PHA: Nichole Tillman, [email protected]; 215-888-2869                              

           

, PA. (December 15, 2023) –  The Philadelphia Housing Authority today honored retiring Council President Darrell L. Clarke, a champion of affordable housing and equity, by naming its newest community center in Sharswood after him.

The Center, at the corner of 24th and Master Street, will be used by residents living in Sharswood 4A, a stylish new development of affordable, spacious rental townhouses unveiled by PHA unveiled just this week.

“Council President Darrell L. Clarke has been a champion of hope, most especially for Sharswood and North Philadelphia,” said Kelvin A. Jeremiah, PHA President & CEO. “I cannot think of a more fitting tribute for a man so deeply committed to preservation and expansion of affordable housing, equity, and social and economic mobility. When PHA began to revitalize the formerly red-lined neighborhood of Sharswood, the skeptics told us our bold plans wouldn’t work.  We made promises to the people in this once-forgotten neighborhood, and we were able to keep them because Darrell Clarke worked beside us, advocating mightily for the residents in the Fifth Council District. Both of us are stubborn, and both of us refuse to take no for an answer.”

Clarke Introduced and passed legislation authorizing PHA to acquire over1, 200 vacant lots in the project footprint.  He supported and advocated for PHA’s $30 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant, and secured city grant funds to meet the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) local match requirement. Clarke supported the overall project as well, assisting in obtaining zoning and expedited building permits that allowed PHA to meet the growing demand for affordable homes.

The 4A townhouses replace some of the PHA rental units lost when the authority imploded Blumberg Towers in 2016. The aging towers were in need of major repairs, and they had become a haven for drugs and crime. The modern townhouses blend in with the architecture of the surrounding neighborhood. The new Darrell L. Clarke Community Center has a kitchenette, a space for community gatherings, and computers that residents can use.

The new community center will serve as a reminder of Council President Clarke’s service to the city, said Lynette Brown-Sow, Chairman of the PHA Board of Trustees. .

“Darrell Clarke is a champion of the people as well as an astute legislator who is highly skilled at bringing together diverse groups and partners to solve challenges,” said Lynette Brown-Sow, Chairman of the PHA Board of Commissioners. “His legislative agenda has always been centered on the principles of fairness and equity. He understands, truly, that Philadelphia benefits the most when everyone in the city gains from the growth and prosperity that new development brings.”

Asia Coney, a PHA resident who serves on the PHA Board of Commissioners, said the recognition is well deserved.

“Council President Clarke is often there before we can even make the call asking for help,” Coney said. “He travels around the neighborhoods, listening to residents’ concerns and seeking bold ways to improve housing affordability and preserve the existing housing stock. PHA residents are grateful for all that he has done for the city, for us, and for our communities.”

Clarke, who is the President of City Council, represents the 5th Council District which includes North Central Philadelphia, Strawberry Mansion, Lower Hunting Park, Ludlow, Yorktown, West Poplar, Fairhill, Brewerytown, Francisville, Spring Garden, Fairmount, Logan Square, and parts of Northwood, Fishtown, Northern Liberties, and Center City.

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