Top Housing Priorities
Set at NRC’s Housing Planning Meeting – December 4th, 2012
Note: Community-elected top priorities per “project area” are numbered.
Other ideas are highlighted by an asterisk.
Housing Creation & Real Estate Development
1. Explore feasibility for owning/partnering for development
2. Identify properties for new development (multi-family and senior)
o Connect potential buyers and current landlords to purchase/rehab substandard buildings
o Consider working with landlords to reduce costs and generate revenue
Energy Efficiency
1. Promote energy efficiency programs and resources to homeowners and landlords
o Energy Impact Illinois Rebate Program
* Encourage civics to host free energy “demos” to become more energy efficient and spread word
about energy efficiency opportunities
Preserving Rental Housing/Landlord Support
1. Lower costs of running apartment buildings
o Build a network of landlords
o Explore cost saving opportunities
o Voluntary participation
o Shared resources (preferred vendor list/builders group)
2. Create a database of landlords
o Identify preferred method of communication
o Develop a Yahoo Group or listserv to share information and resources
3. Address safety issues
o Gang issues
o Focus attention on hot spots
o Need for more police involvement
o Better lighting
o Install security cameras
4. Conduct broad community outreach
o More education on available programs and services
* Facilitate city connections
o Meetings with landlords and city officials
* Continue to identify programs and resources
* Provide technical assistance to individual landlords
* Organize housing advocacy campaigns
o Example: porch codes- advocate for clear, simple, consistent and reasonable codes
Homeownership/Condominium Owners Support
1. Support condo owners: work with associations for better management and to reduce costs
2. Foreclosure outreach and take control of properties post-foreclosure
o Identify developers to quickly buy, rehab and sell foreclosed properties
o Build relationships with banks to identify houses with distressed owners (pre-foreclosure)
o Utilize relationships with banks for group selling and/or help identify developers
* Advocacy role to push for reduction in loan principle for pre-foreclosure buildings
* Create or identify home repair rebates for single family homes
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