BUILDING COMMUNITIES www.MHPartners.org FALL 2010 301-622-2400 2010 Calendar of Events Oct . Help The Homeless Mini-Walks Nov. Gilbert Highlands Private Tours Nov. Help the Homeless Walkathon Dec. Annual Toy Drive/Holiday Parties Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett joins MHP and its partners at the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Gilbert Highlands. Gilbert Highlands Debuts 8508-8510 Flower Avenue, Takoma Park 21 Units, 1– and 2–bedroom apartments Preservation of 1950s Apartments Hailed as Model Development The $5.34 million acquisition and green renovation of Gilbert Highlands in Takoma Park is a model public-private partnership that came together over the course of three years despite a tough economy. The 21-unit apartment community reopened for occupancy in September after an extensive renovation that included new kitchens, bathrooms, flooring and windows; central air conditioning and individual HVAC units; and energy efficient appliances, lighting and plumbing fixtures. Federal, state and local officials were on hand September 8 th to cut the ribbon and tour the green renovation. Gilbert Highlands was the first of the 28 housing developments in Maryland to open after receiving funding from the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009. An affiliate of MHP acquired the property in 2007 from private owners with the help of Montgomery County and other partners. The construction began last November and created 28 jobs. New Preschool Serves MHP’s Long Branch Residents Gilbert Highlands includes a residential building; onsite rental office and parking; and a community center that houses a bilingual preschool, computer lab and kitchen facilities. The new preschool opened on Sept. 15 and offers a morning and afternoon session for 20 children living at MHP’s properties: Gilbert Highlands, The Crossroads at Flower, Greenwood Terrace, Browning, Sligo View, and Merrimac Gardens. (Watch the video from the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on the website at www.MHPartners.org.) To learn more about MHP and how to get involved, visit www.MHPartners.org. Follow Us on: 27806_MHP NL 11/11/10 1:28 PM Page 1
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BUILDINGCOMMUNITIES
www.MHPartners.org FALL 2010 301-622-2400
2010 Calendar of EventsOct . Help The Homeless Mini-Walks Nov. Gilbert Highlands Private ToursNov. Help the Homeless WalkathonDec. Annual Toy Drive/Holiday Parties
Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett joins MHP and itspartners at the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Gilbert Highlands.
Preservation of 1950s Apartments Hailed as Model DevelopmentThe $5.34 million acquisition and green renovation of Gilbert Highlands in Takoma Park is a model public-privatepartnership that came together over the course of three years despite a tough economy. The 21-unit apartmentcommunity reopened for occupancy in September after an extensive renovation that included new kitchens,bathrooms, flooring and windows; central air conditioning and individual HVAC units; and energy efficientappliances, lighting and plumbing fixtures. Federal, state and local officials were on hand September 8th to cut theribbon and tour the green renovation. Gilbert Highlands was the first of the 28 housing developments in Marylandto open after receiving funding from the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009. An affiliate of MHPacquired the property in 2007 from private owners with the help of Montgomery County and other partners. Theconstruction began last November and created 28 jobs.
New Preschool Serves MHP’s Long Branch ResidentsGilbert Highlands includes a residential building; onsite rental office and parking; and a community center thathouses a bilingual preschool, computer lab and kitchen facilities. The new preschool opened on Sept. 15 and offersa morning and afternoon session for 20 children living at MHP’s properties: Gilbert Highlands, The Crossroads atFlower, Greenwood Terrace, Browning, Sligo View, and Merrimac Gardens. (Watch the video from the RibbonCutting Ceremony on the website at www.MHPartners.org.)
To learn more about MHP and how to getinvolved, visit www.MHPartners.org.
Follow Us on:
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MHP News and NotesNew StaffMHP welcomes five new staff members. They are: Evan Hacker, Controller;Mike Dinkin, Asset Manager; Naudy Martinez, VISTA NeighborhoodCoordinator; Kony Brizuela, Community Life AmeriCorps Member atPembridge Square; and Jacqueline Gutierrez, Community Life AmeriCorpsMember at Gilbert Highlands.
MHP BoardWe mourn the loss of Yuletta Mitchell, 63, who passed away suddenlyOctober 9. She was a management consultant for the AlexandriaRedevelopment and Housing Authority, and joined the MHP Board in 2009.Yuletta was born in North Carolina and grew up in Washington, D.C. Sheattended the University of Maryland, and received the Calvin Coolidge HighSchool Alumni Association 2010 Distinguished Alumni Award. Yuletta is sur-vived by her son, Tony Mitchell, daughter-in-law, Brenda Mitchell, and theirtwo daughters, Krista and Kara.
3M Day of Caring—Volunteers Build Community Garden for Great Hope HomesMHP recently teamed up with volunteers from 3M Health Information Systems (pictured above right) to build acommunity garden for Great Hope Homes in Silver Spring. Funding for the garden was provided by a grant fromGCAAR Realtors Care Fund. Additional landscaping supplies and expertise were provided by RKR Construction andExec-U-Lawn, of Bowie, Maryland. Pictured above left, residents begin building a fence to enclose the garden andprotect it from wildlife.
Support MHP Through Community Investment Tax CreditsDid you know that you can significantly reduce your Maryland tax liability for 2010 while making a targetedcommunity impact in Montgomery County?
With a donation of $500 or more, Maryland residents and businesses can participate in the Community InvestmentTax Credit Program (CITC). Donors will earn a tax credit for 50% of their donation, as well as a tax deduction onstate and federal tax returns. The CITC is an effort by the Maryland Department of Housing and CommunityDevelopment to provide tax incentives to encourage Maryland business entities and/or residents to supportnonprofits that are working to improve our community.
MHP’s tax credits support Community Life Programs for low- and moderate-income families right here inMontgomery County. These programs served more than 1,200 people last year with preschools, homework clubs,teen and summer enrichment programs, adult classes and community events. Deep funding cuts have put theseprograms in peril. Supporting the CITC program gives donors an incentive to help MHP make up the shortfall andkeep providing these much-needed programs for residents. For more information, contact Patty Reed at 301-622-2400 ext. 22 or [email protected].
MHP is a private, 501(c)(3) thatdevelops affordable housing.Chartered in 1989, it is thelargest nonprofit housingdeveloper in MontgomeryCounty, MD and has developedmore than 1,160 units ofaffordable apartments, condosand townhomes.
MHP is a chartered member ofNeighborWorks® America. Formore information, visitwww.MHPartners.org.
Frances Ballard, 71, considers herself lucky. She has lived in Takoma Parkat 8510 Flower Avenue for more than 30 years. She moved into a groundfloor apartment with her husband on Christmas Day 1977 after he lost hisjob at an apartment community in Prince Georges County.
“He saw the ad in the Washington Post and made a deal with the land-lord - $225 a month, as is, without painting,” Ballard said.
“I had never been to Takoma Park before he brought me here to see thisplace, but I had always liked the name. I fell in love with the red wallcolor in the kitchen and bathroom,” she fondly recalls.
But her husband hired a local company to paint the whole place a softercolor, which cost $250 back then. According to Ballard, a previous tenant had been a carpenter andbuilt floor to ceiling bookcases that she knew would come in handy to display her collectibles. The goldcarpet, however, was another story. They kept it, but she decided to cover it up with a large rug shebought at Montgomery Ward. They settled in, and she grew to love the quiet neighborhood with itsshade trees and walk paths.
RESIDENT SPOTLIGHT
“I would never find another place that suits my needs. I have transportation right here at the door. I can walk to the Giant,
the bank, and my doctor’s office - it’s just great.”
Over the years, Ballard has seen a steady stream of neighbors and several owners come and go. Her husband’s health took a turn in 1989 after a series of strokes. He passed away from cancer in 1998,and she decided to go back to work. After several months of looking, she had a chance meeting with alocal minister who hired her as a full-time receptionist at the nearby Holy Name College Seminary in SilverSpring—a mile down the street by bus. She worked there until her position was eliminated in February of2008, the result of a restructuring due to the economic downturn.
“I made it then and hope to continue making it,” she says, with her trademark smile.
By late 2006, the residents of 8508 and 8510 Flower Avenue had tired of the deteriorating plumbing,drafty windows, decaying kitchens and other issues in the neglected 57-year-old building. They askedMHP to consider purchasing and rehabilitating their home as it had done with other apartment buildingsin the Long Branch neighborhood. The residents exercised their option of first purchase, and assignedtheir right to an affiliate of MHP, which acquired the building in April 2007 with financing fromMontgomery County, Community Housing Capital, and other partners. Ballard and several of her neigh-bors moved out in late 2008, and into the newly renovated The Crossroads at Flower down the street.
Ballard said she always knew she would move back in, as long as she could get her same apartment. Butthe renovations were put on hold for months. MHP had trouble finding investors after the market forlow-income housing tax credits slowed during the recession. The last piece of the financing came togetherin the fall of 2009 when MHP received $1.17 million in ARRA funds through the new tax credit exchangeprogram administered by the State of Maryland. The green renovations began in November 2009, andwere completed by the end of August. Interest in the development spread quickly, and it achieved fullcapacity by September 30. Continued on Next Page
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Continued from Previous Page—Resident Spotlight
Moving Back to Familiar SurroundingsAs Ballard and her daughter packed up her things to prepare for the move back into her newly renovated space,she came across that original paint receipt from 1977 and so many memories. The old gold carpet is long gone,however, and in its place an environmentally-friendly hard surface flooring. The kitchen cabinets and Energy Starappliances are all new, the walls are a soft white, and the unusually large picture window still gives her a greatview out into the tree-lined parking lot.
“I thought it was never going to happen,” says Ballard of the renovations. “I moved out in November 2008. ButI’m here now, and it’s so nice to come back. The only thing that hasn’t changed is the mosaic tile flooring in thehallway, which is terrific that MHP would save a piece of the former building.”
Now fully retired, Ballard, who is a native of West Virginia, says she wouldn’t live anywhere else. Her daughterand son-in-law live in Alexandria, Virginia, and offered to buy her a condo in northern Virginia to be closer tofamily. But after seeing a few places, she declined.
“I would never find another place that suits my needs. I have transportation right here at the door. I can walk tothe Giant, the bank, and my doctor’s office - it’s just great. There are churches all around. I’m too old to start chas-ing buses again. I hope it stays this way.”
DEVELOPMENT PAGE
Gilbert Highlands Development PartnersMaryland DHCD EDG ArchitectsMontgomery County DHCA RKR ConstructionCiti Community Capital City of Takoma ParkNeighborWorks America Building Consultants Inc.Community Housing Capital Charles Tini and Associates, Inc.
8508-8510 Flower AvenueBuilt in: 1953Acquired by MHP Affiliate: April 2007Renovation Began: Nov 2009Renovation Completed: Aug 28, 2010Ribbon Cutting Ceremony: Sept 8, 2010Total Development Cost: $5.34 million
Maple Towers Rehab in Full SwingThe planned $5.25 million green rehabilitation of 7610 Maple Avenuein Takoma Park started on June 30th and is in full swing. Constructionis scheduled to be completed next spring. It will be home to 36families.
MHP acquired the 8-story brick building in 2008 from a private owner.The 44-year-old building has been vacant since 2006. It is receiving acomplete makeover—including a new roof, elevator, kitchens andbathrooms, windows and doors, among other things. The asbestoshas been removed. A focal point of the project includes the additionof a 2,000-square-foot community center that will house a preschool,meeting rooms, and office space for the Community Life staff.
Bowie Mill in Olney Moving AheadThe Montgomery County Council in September approvedthe rezoning of the 32-acre site in Olney that will becomeBowie Mill, a mixed-income for-sale development with114 townhomes and single family homes.
The new construction project is a joint venture betweenMHP and Elm Street Development. It is located at 18241Bowie Mill Road, and will include 46 market-rate units, 34moderately-priced dwelling units, and 34 workforcehousing units. The next phase of the project is to obtainsite plan approvals. We remain on schedule to breakground in 2012, and deliver finished pads to homebuildersin 2013.
Browning Avenue Gets UpdatesA minor renovation is underway at the 16-unitbuilding at 906 Browning Avenue in the Long Branchneighborhood of Silver Spring.Updates include replacing the waste and waterpipes; replacing the current air conditioning units;installing new kitchen cabinets, countertops, sinksand flooring; and installing water saving fixtures inthe bathrooms, and energy-efficient refrigeratorsand stoves in the kitchens. The 4-level brick buildingis also receiving a new secured entry system,landscaping, resident mailboxes, and a bike rack.Renovations are scheduled to be completed by theend of December.
MAPLETOWERS
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Montgomery Housing Partnership’s work is made possible by the generous donations of corpo-rations, individuals and state and county government. We would like to recognize and thankthe following donors who have contributed to MHP April 1 to August 31, 2010. If there is anomission or error, please contact Patty Reed at 301-622-2400 ext 22.
Foundation LevelLaura and Chip Bay*Gina* and James Williams
Circle Level Leon AndrisJames* and Marian BrodskyNancy Bushwick-MalloyJohn CarmanLois Christeller
Workplace GivingAmerica’s CharitiesLocal Independent Charities of AmericaMaryland Charity CampaignUnited Way of Delaware
IndividualsCalvin B. and Elizabeth BaldwinTad BaldwinDorothy P. Boerner
Louis Brill Lois M. Christeller, in Memory of
Rosalie SilverbergCarla EvansJoseph and Dorothy Feinberg, in
Memory of Rosalie SilverbergMargaret Fitzgerald-BareMarian Fryer Stephen GiddingsJoseph GuggenheimJohn P. HewittBrett W. KaplowitzLinda Kelly*David Langstaff & Family / Atlantic
Trust Private Wealth ManagementJim MartinkoHiroko McCamey, in Memory of
William McCameySusan Wiener and Jeffrey Mosley *Marian O’ConorStephen OeschS. Bruce Pascal Christine PellerinKelly PelzJorgen PundaLawrence N. RosenblumDavid and Nancy ScullMartin SeldeenChuck SmithRueben SnipperLarry StewartJohn C. Tracey
Dru Tyler Mary S. Von Euler
Corporate, Organizations & FoundationsAir Force Association, in Memory of
Richmond “Max” KeeneyBethesda United Church of ChristCapital OneCasey Charitable MatchCiti FoundationCommunity Foundation for
Montgomery CountyCommunity Life EventsCorcoran CaterersDonohoe Companies, Inc. Excel Beyond the Bell FundHousing Association of Nonprofit
Developers Keker Family FoundationHarold and Rose Kramer FundM&T BankM&T Charitable FoundationMaryland Affordable Housing TrustMitchell & Best Homebuilders LLCMontgomery County DHCAMushinsky Voelzke & Associates, Chtd.NeighborWorks AmericaSaint Mark Presbyterian ChurchSouth Congregational Church, in
Memory of Richmond “Max” Keeney SunTrust Mid-Atlantic Foundation
Phyllis* and Ira LiebermanSheila Maith*Williams and Laurel Kinn MartinRobert Mitchell*S. Bruce PascalRichard Perlmutter*Jorgen PundaPatty Reed
Ken RehfussSally and Peter RomanRobert RosenfeldGail Scott-Parizer*Barbara Sears*Stacy Plotkin Silber*Jackie Simon*John* and Mary SlidellAli Solis*James Soltesz
Norman Christeller Classic—2010 Golf Sponsors
*Denotes current or former board member
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HOW YOU CAN HELP
Designate MHP when youdonate through United Way or
the Combined Federal
Campaign (CFC) at your work-place!
United Way — DC 8849United Way— MD 3355CFC—DC & MD 16358
MHP Awarded $20K Grant from Capital OneIn October, MHP President Robert Goldman received a checkfrom Jim Taylor, Mid-Atlantic CRA Business Development Officer at Capital One. The grant will be used to help MHPexpand affordable housing in Montgomery County andprovide educational services to residents during 2010.
Calling all Walkers—HTHMHP is proud to be a beneficiary agency for the 2010 Help the HomelessWalkathon on the Mall in DC on Saturday, Nov. 20.
The funds we raise will go toward providing educational programs for residents at MHP properties.
Please join MHP’s team! To pre-register, go to www.helpthehomelessdc.org andselect MHP—MD024.
