Saratoga Square on the move!!!

In 2010, Jericho Road announced that after a year of research and planning, the development of Saratoga Square was finally under way. We are thrilled to report to you now that this collaboration between Jericho Road Episcopal Housing Initiative, Enterprise Corporation of the Delta, New Orleans Neighborhood Collaborative (NONDC), Neighborhood Development Foundation (NDF), Louisiana Housing Finance Authority (LHFA), and New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA) has been on the move putting HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program dollars to good use creating energy efficient affordable homeownership opportunities for many working families! Saratoga Square is located on Martin Luther King Blvd. between Rampart and Saratoga Streets in the Faubourg Lafayette Neighborhood of Central City. This development is part of a comprehensive neighborhood development strategy and has addressed a very serious issue in New Orleans – blight removal. Other development in the area includes NDF office space, NORA office space and apartments for the elderly as well as a future development of the Myrtle Banks School Site.

Moving right along…there have already been 6 single family homes completed at Saratoga Square and 3 are three going up on the front of the square right now with 4 more to come. All of the homes being built in this development have three bedrooms, two baths and are located close to the Central Business District of New Orleans. Each of these homes will meet the Energy Star energy efficiency criteria as well. For more informaiton on the homes at Saratoga Square contact Jericho Road’s Chelon Abrahms at 504-895-6763, x 5.

Faubourg Lafayette Residents Find a
“Green” Way to Promote Safety

Faubourg Lafayette residents partner with Green Light New Orleans to bring CFL bulbs to their neighbors!

The Safety Committee of the Faubourg Lafayette Neighborhood Association has been meeting monthly since December of 2010, attempting to think of creative solutions to crime issues in the neighborhood. This ongoing discussion led residents to address poor street lighting as a major concern and to partner with Green Light New Orleans to bring energy-efficient light bulbs to their neighbors. Residents did door-to-door outreach to their neighbors, informing them of their campaign to get their neighbors to leave their porch lights on at night and offering to sign them up for a free porch light. Most residents were also enrolled in Green Lights program to get all of the bulbs in their home replaced. On April 16th, resident volunteers and high school volunteers from Ben Franklin High School hosted “Light Up the Neighborhood,” in which they installed bulbs in 50 homes in 3 hours!

Neighborhood Stabilization Program

Jericho Road is the recipient of two generous Neighborhood Stabilization Program grants.

What is the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP)?

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, "Congress created the Neighborhood Stabilization Program to help cities, counties and states deal with community problems that are the result of the mortgage foreclosure crisis in the nation. HUD provides money to about 250 local governments (cities and counties) and all 50 states. Generally, the money must be used to buy, fix up, and resell foreclosed and abandoned homes. As long as the funds are used for this redevelopment, the units of government that receive HUD funds decide how to use the funds and what specific redevelopment activities to undertake."

As our nation continues to rebound from the ongoing economic crisis, and as Jericho Road continues our work of revitalizing Central City, these funds are an important source of neighborhood support and ultimately renewal. Jericho Road is utilizing its NSP grants to purchase vacant lots and abandoned structures, and build homes on previously empty lots in our Saratoga Square development. Our two grants have come through partnerships with both the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency and the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority.

In the upcoming weeks, we’ll let you know more about our partners and projects with our two NSP grants.

JERICHO ROAD EPISCOPAL HOUSING INITIATIVE of New Orleans, founded in part by Episcopal Relief & Development, is a neighborhood-based nonprofit homebuilder that provides families with healthy and energy efficient affordable housing opportunities. We partner with neighborhood residents, organizations and businesses to create and maintain a stable and thriving community.

In consultation with Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Department of Occupational Therapy, Jericho Road is constructing homes that promote accessibility through Universal Design principles. Jericho Road is committed to building homes for a lifetime.