[House Hearing, 110 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
PUBLIC HOUSING REDEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES:
IMPLICATIONS FOR JORDAN DOWNS,
ITS COMMUNITY, AND RESIDENTS
=======================================================================
FIELD HEARING
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON
HOUSING AND COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITY
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON FINANCIAL SERVICES
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
MARCH 15, 2008
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Financial Services
Serial No. 110-101
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
41-732 WASHINGTON : 2008
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Washington, DC 20402-0001
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON FINANCIAL SERVICES
BARNEY FRANK, Massachusetts, Chairman
PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania SPENCER BACHUS, Alabama
MAXINE WATERS, California DEBORAH PRYCE, Ohio
CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York MICHAEL N. CASTLE, Delaware
LUIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois PETER T. KING, New York
NYDIA M. VELAZQUEZ, New York EDWARD R. ROYCE, California
MELVIN L. WATT, North Carolina FRANK D. LUCAS, Oklahoma
GARY L. ACKERMAN, New York RON PAUL, Texas
BRAD SHERMAN, California STEVEN C. LaTOURETTE, Ohio
GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York DONALD A. MANZULLO, Illinois
DENNIS MOORE, Kansas WALTER B. JONES, Jr., North
MICHAEL E. CAPUANO, Massachusetts Carolina
RUBEN HINOJOSA, Texas JUDY BIGGERT, Illinois
WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, Connecticut
CAROLYN McCARTHY, New York GARY G. MILLER, California
JOE BACA, California SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West
STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts Virginia
BRAD MILLER, North Carolina TOM FEENEY, Florida
DAVID SCOTT, Georgia JEB HENSARLING, Texas
AL GREEN, Texas SCOTT GARRETT, New Jersey
EMANUEL CLEAVER, Missouri GINNY BROWN-WAITE, Florida
MELISSA L. BEAN, Illinois J. GRESHAM BARRETT, South Carolina
GWEN MOORE, Wisconsin, JIM GERLACH, Pennsylvania
LINCOLN DAVIS, Tennessee STEVAN PEARCE, New Mexico
PAUL W. HODES, New Hampshire RANDY NEUGEBAUER, Texas
KEITH ELLISON, Minnesota TOM PRICE, Georgia
RON KLEIN, Florida GEOFF DAVIS, Kentucky
TIM MAHONEY, Florida PATRICK T. McHENRY, North Carolina
CHARLES A. WILSON, Ohio JOHN CAMPBELL, California
ED PERLMUTTER, Colorado ADAM PUTNAM, Florida
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut MICHELE BACHMANN, Minnesota
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana PETER J. ROSKAM, Illinois
ROBERT WEXLER, Florida THADDEUS G. McCOTTER, Michigan
JIM MARSHALL, Georgia KEVIN McCARTHY, California
DAN BOREN, Oklahoma DEAN HELLER, Nevada
Jeanne M. Roslanowick, Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity
MAXINE WATERS, California, Chairwoman
NYDIA M. VELAZQUEZ, New York SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West
STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts Virginia
EMANUEL CLEAVER, Missouri STEVAN PEARCE, New Mexico
AL GREEN, Texas PETER T. KING, New York
WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri JUDY BIGGERT, Illinois
CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, Connecticut
GWEN MOORE, Wisconsin, GARY G. MILLER, California
KEITH ELLISON, Minnesota SCOTT GARRETT, New Jersey
CHARLES A. WILSON, Ohio RANDY NEUGEBAUER, Texas
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut GEOFF DAVIS, Kentucky
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana JOHN CAMPBELL, California
THADDEUS G. McCOTTER, Michigan
KEVIN McCARTHY, California
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing held on:
March 15, 2008............................................... 1
Appendix:
March 15, 2008............................................... 33
WITNESSES
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Blom, Dominique, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Public
Housing Investments, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development.................................................... 4
Broomfield, Henry, Chair, Watts Neighborhood Council............. 21
Brown, Eric, Economic Development Director for Watts, Office of
Councilwoman Janice Hahn, Council District 15.................. 8
Henderson, Keith, Business Manager, Jordan Downs Resident
Management Corporation......................................... 19
Hisserich, Helmi A., Deputy Mayor of Housing and Economic
Development Policy, Office of the Mayor, City of Los Angeles... 6
Jones, Marlo, Resident, Jordan Downs Housing Development......... 20
Montiel, Rudolf C., President and CEO, Housing Authority of the
City of Los Angeles............................................ 10
Neal, Oscar, Chair, Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce........ 22
Pope, Reverend Reginald A., Pastor, Bethel Missionary Baptist
Church......................................................... 18
APPENDIX
Prepared statements:
Blom, Dominique.............................................. 34
Broomfield, Henry............................................ 38
Brown, Eric (Janice Hahn).................................... 40
Henderson, Keith............................................. 42
Hisserich, Helmi A........................................... 44
Jones, Marlo................................................. 49
Montiel, Rudolf C............................................ 50
Neal, Oscar.................................................. 55
Pope, Reverend Reginald A.................................... 56
PUBLIC HOUSING REDEVELOPMENT
STRATEGIES: IMPLICATIONS
FOR JORDAN DOWNS, ITS
COMMUNITY, AND RESIDENTS
----------
Saturday, March 15, 2008
U.S. House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Housing and
Community Opportunity,
Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, D.C.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 11 a.m., at
Jordan Downs Recreation Center, 9900 Grape Street, Los Angeles,
California, Hon. Maxine Waters [chairwoman of the subcommittee]
presiding.
Present: Representative Waters
Also present: Representative Richardson.
Chairwoman Waters. I would like to ask all of those in the
back to take their seats. This hearing of the Subcommittee on
Housing and Community Opportunity will come to order.
I would like to say good morning to everyone and thank you
all for taking time on a busy Saturday to come here and be with
us in the gymnasium today to explore a lot of the rumors that
have been taking place.
I would like to not only thank you for being here, but I
would like to thank all of the volunteers of the resident
council who work to make sure that Jordan is connected to our
Los Angeles Housing Authority and that you are getting the
resources that you need and that you are basically helping to
maintain the upkeep of this community.
I have been in this gym many times over the past 20 or 30
years or so and we do not normally have a formal hearing;
usually we have town hall meetings or we are meeting around a
crisis. Today this is a formal hearing of the Subcommittee on
Housing and Community Opportunity of the Committee on Financial
Services of the Congress of the United States of America, and
it is being recorded because we believe that it is important
for all of us to be on the record about what we are doing,
where we are going, and to understand what the facts are about
possible or potential development here at Jordan Downs and
perhaps the rest of South Los Angeles.
One of the reasons I wanted to hold this hearing today was
because we have been through rumors in this community before.
Over the years, the rumors have been rampant about what was
going to happen at Jordan Downs, who was going to be relocated,
and what kind of development was going to take the place of
what we know as Jordan Downs today. We have seen those rumors
cause a lot of people to act in ways that they thought would
protect them from being dislocated.
I can recall one year when the rumors were rampant. Some
young people coming to my office to say, ``Ms. Waters, we do
not intend to allow anybody to put our grandmothers out. We do
not intend to allow anybody to create homelessness. We do not
intend to let anybody take our community.'' So remembering the
concerns of many of our residents from yesteryear, I think it
is important to get the facts to understand what it is and what
it is not so that is why we are here today.
Having said that, we have a number of Members who wanted to
be with us today but could not be here. We have some Members
who are right here in California, but they are holding the
caucuses for the Democratic party endorsements today. All of us
who run in these various offices in the State of California,
and in the United States Congress, have to go before delegates
and they have to decide whether or not we are going to be
officially endorsed by the party, so many of them could not be
here because of that.
We will be joined a little bit later by one of our newest
Members of Congress, Congresswoman Laura Richardson, who is in
the district adjacent to this, so we work very closely
together. While I represent Jordan Downs, she represents
Nickerson Gardens, the other big housing development at
Imperial Courts to the south of us. She will join me as she
leaves her caucus today to participate in this hearing.
I want you to know that all over the country, the future of
public housing development is being discussed. Many of you know
that I have been very much involved in what is going on in the
Gulf Coast. I have been very much involved in what is happening
to public housing tenants, in New Orleans in particular, but
also in Mississippi.
As you know, it is no secret that I was very concerned that
the public housing units in New Orleans were boarded-up after
Hurricane Katrina and people were given Section 8 vouchers.
Some are in FEMA trailers still; some are in still in Houston,
Texas; Austin, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; and other places. The
units are still boarded-up and now HUD has decided that they
are going to demolish most of those units in New Orleans,
including the big ones that you know about, La Fete and St.
Bernard. These housing units are coming down.
One of the things I have said to HUD authorities and to Mr.
Montiel here at our own City Housing Authority and one of the
things we have placed into law as we have passed HOPE VI
legislation is that if there is redevelopment in any of our
public housing developments, there must be one-for-one
replacement.
There must also be phased redevelopment so that people
don't get lost and they don't come up with relocation schemes
and we don't know what happens to residents. I want to share
that with you because I, along with the chairman of the full
Financial Services Committee, Chairman Barney Frank, and others
are focused on public housing development. We intend and we are
putting into law more resident involvement. I know that hurts
the ears of some people but we believe in resident involvement.
We believe again in one-for-one replacement if development
ever takes place, and we believe that there must be phased
redevelopment so people don't get lost in relocations. Also,
some of the basic beliefs that we have been working with in the
Congress of the United States.
Today, in addition to the work we have done on HOPE VI, we
are focused on Jordan Downs because of the rumors. There have
been some town hall meetings that have been held here. There
have been rumors about developers that have been contracted
with. There have been rumors about the kind of development that
would take place if, in fact, there is redevelopment. All kinds
of rumors.
I have said to Mr. Montiel, who is the housing authority
director, that there will never be any development that takes
place in secret. There will never be anything that begins in
the dark of night. There should never be any attempt to get a
plan together without the people who live in Jordan Downs being
involved in the development of any plan that takes place.
Mr. Montiel agrees with me and, of course, I threaten him
every time I see him and he understands. He is a willing
participant here today because he is going to tell us
everything that he knows about any discussion about development
here at Jordan Downs. He may also want to talk about other
developments a bit in South Los Angeles.
With that, we will begin our hearing. I am going to call on
our first panel. Let me introduce the entire panel: Ms.
Dominique Blom, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Public
Housing Investments, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development; Ms. Helmi Hisserich, deputy mayor for housing and
economic development policy, Office of the Mayor, City of Los
Angeles; Mr. Rudy Montiel, executive director, Housing
Authority of the City of Los Angeles; and Mr. Eric Brown,
economic development director for Watts, Office of Councilwoman
Janice Hahn, Council District 15.
That is our first panel and we will start with Ms.
Dominique Blom. Thank you for being here.
Hold on one moment. For the people in the back of the room,
please come forward. There are seats up here and we have to be
careful because of the bounce-back in the auditorium. When you
are speaking in the back, it bounces and it disturbs the
speaker and we can't really hear what they are saying, and that
is important. We want to know what everybody is saying today.
We want to understand them clearly.
With that, please come forward. We have some seats up here.
Do we need some more chairs? Can we get some more chairs
brought in? Where is Mr. Mikael Moore? I would ask Mr. Edgar
Saenz. I see that April is in the back. Let us get some more
chairs so that everybody can be seated. I know that we have
more chairs in this building. Let us just bring them up so that
everybody can get comfortable.
I am so pleased to see the participation that we are seeing
and I want the chairs to be brought in to accommodate everybody
who is here. Will you point to the seats so people can come and
take them? All right. We have people with their hands up where
there are chairs. Please come in. I would like April to go back
to the office and find out if there are more chairs in the
building somewhere. Would you ask if they have even more
folding chairs they can bring in? They can bring them down
front. We have lots of chairs over here to my left. Come right
in.
Excuse me, Ms. Blom. We will start in just a moment. Let us
get everybody settled.
While they are getting seated, I would like all of my
witnesses here to know that without objection, your written
statements will be made a part of the record, and each of you
will be recognized for 5 minutes. You don't have to read your
testimony; you can give us a summary if you would like. You
certainly may read it, but I am going to ask you to keep it
within 5 minutes.
Mr. Greg Brown, do you want to take a seat up here with us?
Thank you, Edgar. Hello, Ms. Day. How are you doing? Even
though my eyes are not that good, I can see you. Okay. We are
doing pretty good. We only have a few more people standing in
the back. Come right down front. Right down front. We have
plenty of chairs over here to my left. Hello, Mr. King. How are
you doing? Good to see you. There are interpreters in the back
there. Thank you. How are you doing? Good to see you. Come
right down front. Come right down. We have some chairs right
over here for you. As I understand it, Mr. Rudy Montiel's
testimony is in Spanish. It has been transcribed.
Mr. Montiel. My testimony was transcribed.
Chairwoman Waters. And it is at the table to be passed out?
Mr. Montiel. I understand that is the case.
Chairwoman Waters. Okay. Staff, I would like to ask our
translators to announce that Mr. Rudy Montiel's testimony is in
Spanish at the table so that they can get a copy and follow it
also along with him as he testifies. I guess they can do it
that way.
All right. We are going to begin again, and I am going to
ask Ms. Dominique Blom, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the
Office of Public Housing Investments, U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development, to begin her testimony. Thank
you.
STATEMENT OF DOMINIQUE BLOM, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY, OFFICE
OF PUBLIC HOUSING INVESTMENTS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Ms. Blom. Thank you very much. Good morning, Chairwoman
Waters. I am Dominique Blom, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for
the Office of Public Housing Investments at the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development.
Thank you very much for inviting me to testify today. Over
the last 15 years, the HOPE VI Program has provided funding for
the revitalization of distressed public housing developments.
While the HOPE VI Program represents a significant investment
in these communities, the Program is not available or
appropriate for all public housing revitalization efforts.
The four most significant funding alternatives to the HOPE
VI revitalization program operated by the Department are: HOPE
VI demolition grants; the Mixed-Finance Public Housing Program;
the Capital Fund Financing Program; and the Public Housing
Mortgage Program.
HOPE VI demolition grants provide housing authorities with
resources to raze distressed developments and relocate
families. The result is a cleared site that more readily
attracts resources for the revitalization of the project. These
grants are an especially important resource for housing
authorities that do not have a HOPE VI revitalization grant,
but do have access to other funding sources.
Since 1996, HUD has provided over $395 million in
demolition funds across 127 public housing agencies. In the
case of the Dana Strand site here in Los Angeles, the Housing
Authority applied several times for a HOPE VI revitalization
grant but did not receive HOPE VI funding. However, the Agency
was awarded $3.2 million in demolition grant funds in 2001.
Demolition was completed in 2003 and the cleared site attracted
approximately $54 million in redevelopment funding which was
used to build 236 public housing and tax credit units for low-
income families.
The Mixed-Finance Public Housing Program, which was used to
redevelop Dana Strand, allows HUD and Housing Authorities to
mix public and private funds to develop and operate housing
developments. Since 2004, public housing agencies have used
this program to construct over 12,000 units of public and other
affordable housing across 121 projects spending $670 million in
Federal public housing funds and $1.4 billion in leverage
resources.
The third alternative program available through the
Department to redevelop public housing is the Capital Fund
Financing Program. This program allows public housing agencies
to borrow from banks or issue bonds using their Capital Fund
grants for debt service. Public housing agencies are able to
leverage up to one-third of their Capital Funds to complete
modernization or redevelopment of distressed public housing
developments. As of December 31, 2007, HUD has approved 106
transactions in which 186 public housing agencies are
participating. The total amount of loan and bond financing
approved across these projects exceeds $3 billion.
For example, in California, the Oxnard and Santa Clara
housing authorities raised over $10 million in bond financing.
More recently, the Kern County Housing Authority undertook a
direct loan in excess of $6 million using the Program.
In addition to these resources, HUD recently established
the Public Housing Mortgage Program. This program allows public
housing agencies to borrow funds for affordable housing
purposes by providing a mortgage on public housing real estate.
The most recently approved transaction under this program
allowed the Tacoma Housing Authority to mortgage public housing
land to facilitate a $16 million bridge loan for infrastructure
development. This investment was combined with additional funds
that will ultimately yield over 360 affordable homeownership
and rental units.
The primary reasons for housing agencies to pursue these
alternative funding sources are the scarcity of HOPE VI
redevelopment funds, the planning costs and the time involved
in submitting a HOPE VI revitalization application, and the
belief that the project may not be competitive for HOPE VI
funding.
Although these alternative funding sources do not provide
dedicated resources for Community and Supportive Services, the
Department operates several programs that public housing
authorities can draw on to support these activities, such as
the Resident Opportunities and Self-Sufficiency Grant Program
and the Family Self-Sufficiency Program. Moreover, resident and
community involvement is a required component across each of
the funding streams I have discussed.
Despite the smaller scale of non-HOPE VI revitalization
projects, the spillover impacts on the surrounding neighborhood
are similar to those documented under the HOPE VI Program.
These efforts tend to result in higher quality housing, a lower
crime rate, and increased property values and business
development in the surrounding neighborhood.
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the non-HOPE VI
revitalization programs operated by HUD. We believe the
programs I have outlined today are invaluable resources to
public housing agencies in their efforts to improve the quality
and quantity of affordable housing in their communities. I am
happy to respond to any questions that you may have.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Blom can be found on page 34
of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much.
Next we will hear from Ms. Helmi Hisserich. Would you
please pronounce your last name to make sure we are saying it
correctly.
STATEMENT OF HELMI A. HISSERICH, DEPUTY MAYOR OF HOUSING AND
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT POLICY, OFFICE OF THE MAYOR, CITY OF LOS
ANGELES
Ms. Hisserich. Thank you. Good morning, Chairwoman Waters.
My name is Helmi Hisserich.
Chairwoman Waters. Hisserich. Thank you very much.
Ms. Hisserich. Yes. I am the deputy mayor for housing and
economic development policy in the administration of Mayor
Villaraigosa. In the interest of time, I will summarize my
comments and provide my written testimony; it is in the back of
the room.
One of my primary responsibilities as Deputy Mayor is to
ensure that the City agencies that are working on housing are
working together not only on broad citywide housing goals, but
also on specific strategic actions. I would like to first talk
a little bit about the housing crisis in Los Angeles and what
we are confronting, and then I will spend a few minutes
discussing how redevelopment of public housing fits into the
overall plan.
I want to thank you for the hearing today because this is
an important opportunity to consider redevelopment of public
housing and also to clear up confusion surrounding the
discussion of public housing in Jordan Downs.
Los Angeles is in the midst of a housing crisis that is
among the worst in the country. Last July, Forbes.com ranked
Los Angeles the number one least affordable housing market in
the United States based on a study that compared housing prices
to incomes. Last August, the Center for Housing Policy ranked
Los Angeles No. 1 out of 31 metropolitan areas nationwide as
having the greatest percentage of working households spending
more than half of their income on housing.
Last September, the Los Angeles Home and Services Authority
updated the City's homeless count and found Los Angeles has the
Nation's largest homeless population, with over 40,000 unhoused
people. According to the census, an estimated 25 percent of Los
Angeles households live in severely overcrowded conditions that
are equivalent to five people living together in a one bedroom
apartment.
Current rental vacancy rates in Los Angeles are at an all-
time low. They are below 5 percent, and in some parts of the
City, rental vacancy rates are as low as 2 percent. In other
words, Los Angeles is fully occupied. Now, due to the
foreclosure crisis and the tightening of the credit market,
more pressure is being put on LA's already full rental housing
market and rents throughout Los Angeles are going up.
One of the reasons Los Angeles is in this crisis is because
the City has not built enough housing to meet the needs of the
population. In order to keep pace with population growth, the
City should be adding approximately 13,000 units of new housing
every year. However, in the past 17 years, Los Angeles has only
met that number twice, in 2006 and 2007.
For many years, Los Angeles has produced far fewer units
than it needs. Not only has Los Angeles not built enough
housing, the housing that has been built has been at prices few
people can afford. If we are to address the real housing need
in Los Angeles, we must build housing for people living on SSI,
housing for people earning $10 an hour, housing for people
earning $20 an hour. In other words, we need to build new
housing in Los Angeles that is affordable to low- and moderate-
income people.
The Mayor has taken a proactive position on the development
of affordable housing. Our office has been actively looking for
opportunities to encourage development of affordable and
workforce housing near transit systems. During the past few
years, most of the City's housing development and investment
has occurred in downtown, Hollywood, and North Hollywood. That
is why when Rudy Montiel of HACLA presented the Mayor last year
with the concept of redeveloping 1950's-era public housing into
mixed-income urban villages, the idea caught the Mayor's
attention. If a plan could be created that could bring
investment, affordable housing, and jobs to Watts, the Mayor is
interested.
However, before any idea can become a reality, the funding
must be identified, the community must be engaged, and a plan
must be developed. That is why it is important for all of us to
begin at the same place. Today, no money has been committed,
community engagement has not begun, and there is no plan in
place. But when the time comes, rest assured that community
involvement will play a key role in this process.
Before beginning a community engagement process, the City
must determine how realistic the funding sources are for the
project. As you know, the redevelopment of public housing
hinges on the City's ability to leverage local resources with
Federal, State, and private sector money. Next year, the
Housing Authority intends to seek HOPE VI funding.
The Major supports this in concept and in anticipation of
this, the Mayor has initiated a capital planning effort with
all of the departments of the City that have housing funds.
These departments include the Housing Authority, the Los
Angeles Housing Department, the Community Redevelopment Agency,
the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, and the Community
Development Department.
The purpose of the capital plan is to identify all the
resources available to support the creation of affordable
housing in Los Angeles over the next 5 years. During the year
ahead, the Mayor looks forward to working with elected and
local leaders to develop a process for community engagement in
Watts and to determine if the redevelopment of public housing
here could be implemented. We must begin with a good plan and
the plan must begin with the community.
We have been reviewing best practices throughout the
country and the Mayor has drafted a set of principles that he
believes are necessary for successful redevelopment of public
housing. I will briefly share with you some of these
principles.
First, involve the residents in the planning. The Mayor
believes the planning effort should involve the people who live
and work in the neighborhood. Residents should be engaged in
the process from the start and throughout.
Second, ensure no loss of public housing. One-for-one
replacement of public housing units is a priority, and
development must be phased-in in a way that minimizes
displacement of existing tenants. Emphasis should be placed on
on-site relocation of tenants.
Third, building a housing ladder--build housing for a mix
of incomes that includes public housing, affordable housing,
and market rate housing. Emphasize housing for families and
make both rental and homeownership opportunities available at
varying income levels. Maximize to the greatest extent possible
affordable housing.
Any such redevelopment project should connect to the
schools and parks. Projects should connect to public
transportation. Projects should connect to jobs. Any
redevelopment effort must be envisioned as a chance to create
an economic ladder in South Los Angeles. Permanent jobs in
growth industries must be part of the plan along with job
training, job placement, local entrepreneurship, minority
contracting, employment opportunities for neighborhood
residents during and after construction, and making the
neighborhood safe.
Finally, make the neighborhood green. Whether it is solar
panels or rooftop gardens, a new development should be a model
for sustainable design that will reduce the carbon footprint of
Los Angeles and make the air in the neighborhood easier to
breathe.
Thank you for your time.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Hisserich can be found on
page 44 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much. Next we will hear
from Mr. Eric Brown, economic development director for Watts,
Office of Councilwoman Janice Hahn, Council District 15.
STATEMENT OF ERIC BROWN, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR FOR
WATTS, OFFICE OF COUNCILWOMAN JANICE HAHN, COUNCIL DISTRICT 15
Mr. Brown. Good afternoon, Chairwoman Waters. My name is
Eric Brown, and I am the deputy representing Councilwoman
Janice Hahn today. I would like to read a letter that she has
submitted to your committee:
``Dear Congresswoman Waters:
``I would like to commend you for holding a hearing on
behalf of the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity
in the Jordan Downs Development. I understand there are extreme
difficulties and challenges that are presented in the creation
of affordable housing. Creating new jobs, new housing, and safe
communities have been my main goals since I was elected to
represent this community in 2001.
``I have more housing developments in my council district
than any other council district in the City. Most of these
developments are some of the oldest public housing stock in the
City. I think that the Federal Government has neglected these
developments in many ways and the constituents of my district
deserve better.
``(1) The idea of redeveloping any of our public housing
developments is very unnerving to many people, particularly the
residents. Because of that, I will only support a redevelopment
that builds replacement housing before any current housing is
demolished. This, in my opinion, is the only acceptable way to
go about the redevelopment, and because of that, the
acquisition of new land near Jordan Downs is vital to any plans
for redevelopment.
``(2) The main principle for redeveloping Jordan Downs is
to revitalize this community. Redeveloping Jordan Downs would
bring jobs, retail, and homeownership to a neighborhood that
both needs and deserves these things.
``(3) I have had two other successful redevelopment
projects in my district, Harbor Village and Dana Strand, that
have been very successful. Dana Strand in the Wilmington, for
example, is currently underway and when completed will consist
of 400 units, consisting of 100 senior units, 120 townhomes,
116 rental units, and a possible 77 units for homeownership.
``(4) I feel there could be great potential for the Jordan
Downs redevelopment project if we can create a strong public
and private partnership with all levels of government. The
impact of this project could be a model for developments around
our City, State, and country.
``(5) I believe that redeveloping Jordan Downs will require
an equal partnership with the community, all levels of
government, and private entities to create a transparent
process to make this project a success. Most importantly, we
must include the current residents of Jordan Downs. Oftentimes,
they are the last to get information and weigh in on the
decisions that most impact their lives. The residents of Jordan
Downs must be included in this process from the very beginning.
``Thank you again for holding this hearing and for allowing
me to give my input.
``Sincerely, Janice Hahn, Councilwoman, 15th District, City
of Los Angeles.''
[The prepared statement of Ms. Hahn can be found on page 40
of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much.
Last on this panel, we will hear from Mr. Rudy Montiel, the
executive director of the Housing Authority of the City of Los
Angeles.
STATEMENT OF RUDOLF C. MONTIEL, PRESIDENT AND CEO, HOUSING
AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES
Mr. Montiel. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
Chairwoman Waters. I would like you to speak right into the
microphone and speak up so everybody can hear you.
Mr. Montiel. Can everybody hear me? Good. Why are we
talking about redevelopment? I think we understand
redevelopment is necessary. It is a national issue. You can see
the housing. The housing is 1940's vintage. The rooms are
small, the kitchens are small. They are not energy efficient.
Many of these developments are not close to good public
schools. They lack good public safety.
So do we have a plan? No, we don't have a plan. We have a
concept. We have a vision that was articulated by the Deputy
Mayor quite well. It is a vision that is not focused on Jordan
Downs. It is citywide. We are looking at other opportunities
citywide.
It is a focus that is based on development of new units for
public housing on a one-to-one replacement. May I say that
again? One-to-one replacement. I will even say it in Spanish.
It will be a phased redevelopment because as was stated
earlier, Los Angeles is full. We have nowhere for our people to
live, for our families to live if we displace them from Jordan
Downs.
It will be green. It will have all the latest efforts to
make our development sustainable, both the construction and the
operation phase. I want to emphasize that nothing happens
without involving the residents. We will not do anything
without involving the residents.
Now, are there rumors? Are there things that people are
hearing? Yes. I am here as the chief executive officer of the
Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles to tell the public
today that we have no definite plan for redevelopment of Jordan
Downs.
Chairwoman Waters. Would you repeat that, please?
Mr. Montiel. I am here to tell the public that we have no
definite plan for redevelopment of Jordan Downs today. What is
our concept? Everybody can see that there is vacant land
adjacent to Jordan Downs. Would we like to acquire it? Of
course we would.
What I am showing now is item one, and we passed out some
smaller versions of this. They are in the audience. This is
vacant land that is adjacent to Jordan Downs. This is Jordan,
this is 97th, this is 103rd, this is Great Street, and this is
Alameda. As you can tell, there is a tremendous amount of
vacant land. The concept would be if we were to acquire this
land, we would build new units. Once the new units were up,
then we could move families from the old units to the new units
and then essentially demolish vacant units and build more.
Some people have heard that we have talked with the LAUSD.
We have because we believe that Jordan High School in the right
community led effort in partnership with city agencies, LAUSD
led by the Mayor's office, we could indeed envision a time when
Jordan High School would be as nice as the brand new high
school over in Southgate that is right there. In addition to
that, there is potential here on the Alameda corridor to
develop retail opportunities that could not only serve the
residents of the new Jordan Downs but also serve as a place
where there could be places of employment for people.
Part of our concept says that we would have local hiring
agreements when we do redevelopment so that the people who live
there today who have the social equity also have the
opportunity to prosper in this redevelopment. Will we involve
the nonprofit sector? Absolutely. Many of the nonprofits are
very skilled at providing the services that we as a housing
authority are not skilled at.
Will we involve the private sector? Absolutely. The private
sector can develop vertical development far more efficiently
than the housing authority. This is what it is all about. A
major partnership, nonprofit, for-profit, public entities, and
public/private coming together to redevelop a new urban
village.
Where are we today? Today we don't have a definite plan.
Today the land is not acquired. When we acquire the land, if we
acquire the land, then we could begin the process of engaging
the public, engaging our community to determine what we can do
together at Jordan Downs. Definitely at this point we have not
entered into a negotiation, much less a contract with any
developer, with any nonprofit, with any for-profit. It simply
isn't true.
I would ask you, as you hear these rumors, the people in
the audience, if you are concerned, if you have doubts, if you
have heard rumors, call me. Marianna DeSoto is at the back of
the room. She has business cards. It is area code (213) 252-
1810
Chairwoman Waters. And they can call you?
Mr. Montiel. They can call. Madam Chairwoman, thank you
again for the opportunity to testify.
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Montiel can be found on page
50 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. At this point, we will ask questions of
our panel before we call the second panel. I an going to start
with our first witness, Ms. Blom. But before I do, I see that
one of our city council persons just entered the room,
Councilman Bernard Parks.
Ms. Blom, you started talking with us about HOPE VI. A lot
of people here know what HOPE VI is and a lot of people don't
know. What is HOPE VI and why do you think your testimony about
HOPE VI is important to what we are doing here today?
Ms. Blom. Thank you, Ms. Waters. The HOPE VI Program was a
program that began in 1993 to fund housing authorities for the
redevelopment of distressed public housing. Currently the
Department is providing 20 million grants to housing
authorities on a competitive basis.
The Fiscal Year 2008 Notice of Funding Availability will
become available soon to housing authorities, and the Housing
Authority of the City of Los Angeles would be able to apply
under that notice of funding availability for this project or
for other projects within its portfolio that are of a
distressed nature and provides grant funds to the housing
authorities to relocate the families, provide community and
supportive services to the families, demolish the development
and then rebuild in a mixed-income setting so that families
will be able to return and come back to a redeveloped project
that has a mix of public housing, affordable housing, and
hopefully market rate housing as well.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. Ms. Hisserich. Are we all
here? Yes. You mentioned a kind of vision that the Mayor has
for housing development and expansion in the city because of a
housing crisis. You alluded to a plan of sorts for perhaps
South Los Angeles. Could you tell us a little more about that?
Is there a definite plan for South Los Angeles that you know
about at this time?
Ms. Hisserich. For housing, there is not a definite plan
for South Los Angeles. The Mayor is very interested in
developing housing in South Los Angeles, throughout South Los
Angeles, and throughout the City of Los Angeles. The goal for
housing is to develop mixed-income communities throughout Los
Angeles. What that means is that there is a great deal of
discussion in the City about traffic in parts of the west side.
The Mayor believes by putting a fair share of affordable
housing in parts of the City where there is not affordable
housing, they can relieve traffic. Similarly, because of
economic disadvantages in South Los Angeles, the Mayor believes
that by creating mixed-income communities in South Los Angeles
we can create jobs and economic opportunity in South Los
Angeles that aren't available today. The redevelopment of
public housing is something that we are looking at throughout
the City at all public housing sites but there isn't a plan as
such in South Los Angeles for that.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. I'm trying to get you to be
as specific as you can. I appreciate that. Here in South Los
Angeles we have Nickerson, of course Jordan, Imperial Courts,
Gonzaque, and Avalon. There is a rumor that there is a plan for
downtown somewhere to get rid of all of the public housing. Is
that true?
Ms. Hisserich. Oh, that is absolutely untrue.
Chairwoman Waters. Okay. All right.
Ms. Hisserich. There is no such plan.
Chairwoman Waters. Okay. Very good. Thank you.
Mr. Brown, thank you for sharing with us the letter from
Janice Hahn. I think she was very clear that she would like to
see improvements and that if there is a way to make life
better, to make the public housing developments better, she
would like to see that. She is adamantly opposed to this
dislocation, displacement in any plan. There must be community
involvement. As of today, she does not know of any plan to do
any development here at Jordan because no land has been
acquired. No money has been put up. Am I correctly stating her
position?
Mr. Brown. You are absolutely correct, Chairwoman Waters.
Chairwoman Waters. Is there anything you want to add to
that?
Mr. Brown. No, thank you.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. Now, Mr. Rudy Montiel. I have
a lot of questions for you.
Mr. Montiel. Okay.
Chairwoman Waters. Let us start with the land. You pointed
out to all of us the land and you gave all of our residents a
copy of this layout that includes Jordan. It shows where the
land is and the surrounding streets. Where are you in the
acquisition of the land? Are you actively trying to acquire
that land?
Mr. Montiel. We have actively pursued acquisition of land
for about the last year, Madam Chairwoman. The land had been
tied up in litigation. It is a public record issue. At this
point, we do not have control of the land.
Chairwoman Waters. Why is it tied up in litigation?
Mr. Montiel. It is tied up in litigation between the
sellers and another buyer. It goes back to 2003.
Chairwoman Waters. So it sounds as if someone attempted to
buy that land, and they have some kind of option of right-of-
refusal, and that has not been resolved. Is that correct?
Mr. Montiel. That is correct. We understand the resolution
on that is forthcoming through the court shortly.
Chairwoman Waters. So you have not spent a dime of your
money. There has been no Federal money. There has been no CDBG
money. There has been no home money, anything spent to acquire
that land at this point. Is that right?
Mr. Montiel. We have not spent a single dollar of any type
of money.
Chairwoman Waters. If the court cleared up the litigation
anytime soon, and you moved to acquire the land, do you have
the money to do it?
Mr. Montiel. We have the funds to acquire the land or the
lines of credit to accomplish that. Yes, ma'am.
Chairwoman Waters. How much does that land cost?
Mr. Montiel. That is an interesting question because we
believe that the land is worth less than the owners believe
that the land is worth.
Chairwoman Waters. How much are they asking for the land?
Mr. Montiel. They are asking for $40 million.
Chairwoman Waters. They are asking for $40 million for the
land. Of course, if you were trying to get it, if you were
going to pursue it, you would be negotiating to try and get it
at a cheaper price?
Mr. Montiel. Absolutely.
Chairwoman Waters. If you got involved in such negotiation
in the next week or month or 6 months, how long do you think it
would take to acquire the land?
Mr. Montiel. I believe that once the lands were out of the
litigation stage, etc., it would probably require between 90
and 180 days to actually get a contract on the land.
Chairwoman Waters. Is there any toxic material deposited on
that land?
Mr. Montiel. We believe that there may be some
environmental impact to at least the first 6 to 12 inches of
soil on the land.
Chairwoman Waters. If so, that would add to the cost.
Clean-up cost would have to be incurred in order to prepare the
land for development. Do you have that money? Are you expecting
that from the Federal Government in the Brownfields Act or
where would you get that money from?
Mr. Montiel. My sense is that once the site was under
control, we would then begin to develop the plan that we were
talking about, not only with the resident involvement, but also
on the financial side bringing together the City resources, and
the State and Federal resources. The Brownfields Act could
potentially be a source of funding for any clean-up.
Chairwoman Waters. As you know, citizens, whether they are
residents of Jordan Downs or any other part of the City, are
concerned about the environmental problems that would be
involved with land where you may have deposits. How would you
involve the citizens in making sure that their concerns can be
satisfied that if there was a plan to develop that land, it
would be cleaned up and saved?
Mr. Montiel. Indeed. There are several requirements at the
State, the local, and even the Federal level that require
community involvement. Obviously on the redevelopment side your
legislation is very strong when it comes to tenant protections.
We agree with it almost to the letter of the legislation. It is
good legislation.
Secondly, on the NEPA and CEQA, the environmental
permitting processes for the State of California are extremely
rigorous, among the most rigorous in the Nation. Finally, just
the local planning process of the comp plan for this part of
the City is being developed by the planning department so at
some point when we were trying to do something here we would
have to involve the planning department and they would have
certain public notice requirements as well in meeting
requirements.
Chairwoman Waters. There is a rumor that you have already
contracted with developers. Do you, or have you, entered into
any agreements with developers to develop Jordan Downs?
Mr. Montiel. Absolutely not.
Chairwoman Waters. You have signed no contracts?
Mr. Montiel. I have signed no contracts.
Chairwoman Waters. You have put no requests out for
proposal?
Mr. Montiel. The only request for proposal that we have put
out, Madam Chairwoman, is for HOPE VI consultants for citywide
development.
Chairwoman Waters. But this would not necessarily be a HOPE
VI project. Is that right?
Mr. Montiel. Not necessarily.
Chairwoman Waters. Not necessarily.
Mr. Montiel. Not necessarily. Ideally HOPE VI money would
be very helpful here, but at this point in the process we are
not sure what the plan would bring.
Chairwoman Waters. Does this project depend on HOPE VI
money?
Mr. Montiel. I don't think that it would depend on HOPE VI
money, although HOPE VI money would be very attractive because
it provides the soft-side dollars, resident training, the job
opportunity, the family self-sufficiency dollars.
Chairwoman Waters. Ms. Blom, how much money did the
President put in the budget for HOPE VI?
Ms. Blom. The President did not ask for any funds as part
of the Fiscal Year 2008 or Fiscal Year 2009 budget submission.
Chairwoman Waters. I think it is important to know that the
President has not requested any funding for HOPE VI. We have a
HOPE VI bill, my legislation that would fund HOPE VI if it goes
through the Congress of the United States. Of course it would
be on the President's desk for signature, but I think it is
important for Mr. Montiel to know that if he is depending on
HOPE VI money, it may or may not be available to him. Okay. So
we have no developers. Do you have any private entities that
have invested any money in the proposed Jordan Downs
redevelopment?
Mr. Montiel. You know, that is an excellent question. If
there are private entities that have invested any money on
Jordan Downs it has not been, and I repeat it has not been at
the direction of the housing authority of the City of Los
Angeles.
Chairwoman Waters. So does that mean that you don't know
about any money that has come from any private source as an
investment for redevelopment of Jordan Downs? Is that what
you're telling me?
Mr. Montiel. That is what I am telling you.
Chairwoman Waters. Because you know that is one of the
rumors.
Mr. Montiel. I understand that.
Chairwoman Waters. There has been no investment by a
private entity. I want the people to understand what you are
saying very clearly, there has been no investment of private
money at this time. Is that correct?
Mr. Montiel. Not in our direction. By saying that, I am
saying that I do not know of anyone who has made an investment
in that property.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. Thank you very much. How many
vacant units do you have?
Mr. Montiel. I would have to ask our manager, Martin
Purrey. Martin, are you in the room? If you will give me a
second, Madam Chairwoman, Mr. Ricks, our director of public
housing, will give me that answer.
Chairwoman Waters. Okay.
Mr. Montiel. We have 20 vacant units here at Jordan Downs
today, two zero.
Chairwoman Waters. Two zero. There has been a rumor, Mr.
Montiel, that you may not have been investing in upkeep at
Jordan Downs and Nickerson because you are anticipating
redevelopment and you are allowing the units to be boarded-up
and you are not putting money towards the upkeep that it should
be put toward. Is that true?
Mr. Montiel. Well, I would answer that, Madam Chairwoman,
this way. Not only is it not true, but during my administration
that began at the end of 2004, we have actually reduced the
number of vacant units citywide. Now, we have taken a phased
approach and we have focused on some communities faster than
others.
Jordan Downs used to have a lot of vacant units. Today it
has a lot less, only 20. Ramona Gardens on the east side of
town had at one time about 120 units. Today they don't have any
vacant units. We are now getting to the point where we have let
an RFP for asbestos abatement citywide to accelerate the
process of filling vacant units targeting Nickerson Gardens
where we have over 200 vacant units right now.
Chairwoman Waters. That is a lot.
Mr. Montiel. Yes. I would add, Madam Chairwoman, that many
of these vacant units have been vacant for over 5 years.
Chairwoman Waters. So while you are in the process of
thinking about redevelopment, of looking at land acquisition,
working on a plan perhaps are you going to continue to do the
work that is necessary to make sure that the units and the
people who live here now are safe and secure and that they are
getting the kind of repairs and upkeep that is necessary for a
good quality of life?
Mr. Montiel. Yes, ma'am, to the extent that we utilize our
relatively small capital budget. As you know, capital fund
allocations have actually been reduced over the last 5 years
from Congress and from the administration of budgets. If those
were to increase, we would obviously do more work. But as far
as utilizing the money that we are getting, we have actually
gone from being 3 years in arrears to trying to spend the money
we get the same year we get it.
Chairwoman Waters. I am aware of that problem and that is
one of the things my subcommittee is working on.
Mr. Montiel. Indeed.
Chairwoman Waters. I guess what I am saying is that you
have 20 units, and that is not a lot. That is relatively small
compared to some of the other public housing developments.
However, because as the Mayor's representative has said, we
have a housing crisis, those units are needed by somebody. I am
talking about ordinary repairs of paint, changing washbasins,
putting in flooring. Do you plan on doing that?
Mr. Montiel. Yes. In fact, under Mr. Ricks' direction, our
new director of public housing, he has initiated a very
aggressive program of accelerating repairs and accelerating
major improvements to the facility throughout the City starting
with roofs, playgrounds, and systems such as electrical and
plumbing.
Chairwoman Waters. Now, if you redevelop it, would probably
follow the HOPE VI model. The HOPE VI model is that you have
market rate units.
Mr. Montiel. Yes.
Chairwoman Waters. That means the fair market rate that has
been charged out in the larger society. You also have
homeownership opportunities?
Mr. Montiel. Yes.
Chairwoman Waters. And then, of course, you have
opportunities for those who qualify for public housing.
Mr. Montiel. Yes.
Chairwoman Waters. How then can you do one-for-one
replacement of all the people who are in public housing if you
are going to dedicate some of these units to market rate and
homeownership?
Mr. Montiel. Excellent question. In our concept, in our
vision because, again, no plan exists, it would be for
increasing the number of units that are onsite because
additional land would be provided as we said. Plus the density
on the existing land would also increase so in some ways you
would have some denser housing.
I believe our Mayor periodically calls it elegit density
which would allow more units here going from about 700 to about
2,100 units in the overall development and that would allow for
public housing one-to-one replacement. For workforce housing a
similar number, about 700 units, and then about 700 units of
market rate and homeownership opportunities.
Chairwoman Waters. What is workforce housing?
Mr. Montiel. Workforce housing is best defined perhaps in
terms of the area of immediate income. Public housing is
typically around 30 percent of the low area. Workforce housing
would go from there probably all the way to 80, 90, or 100
percent where you have working families who still cannot afford
the market rent in the City of Los Angeles. As the Deputy Mayor
said, it is very expensive. Then the market rate would probably
start at 100, 110, or 120 percent on up.
Chairwoman Waters. So you anticipate that should you do
development here, you would expand the number of available
units so that you could accommodate the concept that you just
described, market rate and homeownership, and still have
housing available for people who qualify for public housing.
But you talked about density. Could you have more density
without the approval of the people who live here?
Mr. Montiel. No.
Chairwoman Waters. So if the people who live here say, ``It
is dense enough. We don't want any more density'' how then
would you accommodate the concept?
Mr. Montiel. Well, if the people were to say that we cannot
have any more density and the project, as they say in
development terms, would not pencil without more density. It
would really drive the question of whether or not Jordan Downs
gets redeveloped. As we have discussed before, we are looking
at other opportunities throughout the City understanding that
if Jordan Downs doesn't happen, where else can we begin
redevelopment.
Chairwoman Waters. As I remember this development, we have
outdoor space that we don't want to lose.
Mr. Montiel. Correct.
Chairwoman Waters. Does the proposed development anticipate
utilizing that outdoor space to create the density?
Mr. Montiel. Yes and no. Let me answer it this way. We
believe that in the new urban approach to redeveloping public
housing at Jordan Downs, although there is a lot of space here,
it is not that well-utilized. For example, you have a field
here at the school that gets used about 10 percent of the time.
You have a field here. Then you have a lot of green space
between the units.
I am wondering as you go to other places in Southern
California that are very attractive to people on limit in Santa
Monica and places like that, this is a perfect example. It has
elegit density, yet it has the amenities for people willing to
pay top dollar to get it. That is a concept, how to better
utilize the space.
Chairwoman Waters. I understand what you are saying, but
when you look at a development like Playa Vista and you compare
the way the space is used, and then you take a look at Jordan
Downs or Nickerson or Gonzaque or Avalon Gardens, you will
probably find that there are more children per unit than in
Playa Vista which means in this era of everybody embracing
green space, you probably will need sizable green space.
Mr. Montiel. Indeed. Indeed. Good playgrounds and good
activities for the children. I think the councilwoman saw that
in the redevelopment of Dana Strand. There was an effort to
provide good protected green space for the children at Dana
Strand and that seems to work well.
Chairwoman Waters. That is good. Well, I thank you, Mr.
Montiel. I thank all of our panelists for your testimony. Mr.
Montiel, you are going to stay with us?
Mr. Montiel. Yes, ma'am. I will be here all afternoon.
Chairwoman Waters. We are going to call up our second
panel. The Chair notes that some Members may have additional
questions for you. Without objection, the hearing record will
remain open for 30 days for our Members to submit written
questions to these witnesses and to place their responses in
the record. Thank you, panel.
We will call on our second panel at this time. We basically
have heard from HUD, the City of Los Angeles, the Housing
Authority of the City of Los Angeles, and the Councilwoman who
represents this district.
At this time we are going to hear from those people who
live and/or work in the community who will share with us their
understanding about what is taking place. I will introduce
those witnesses to you at this time.
Mr. Keith Henderson, business manager, Jordan Downs
Resident Management Corporation; Mr. Marlo Jones, resident,
Jordan Downs Housing Development; Mr. Henry Broomfield, chair,
Watts Neighborhood Council; Reverend Reginald A. Pope, Pastor,
Bethel Missionary Baptist Church; Reverend Greg Bynum, Pastor,
Lighthouse Church & Community Outreach. He is not here? All
right. He is not here at this time. Mr. Oscar Neal, chair,
Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce.
We are going to start with Reverend Reginald Pope, Pastor
of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church. I would like to welcome
all of our members of this panel with us today. We have to say
certain things to go into the official record. That is why they
have to keep handing me these pieces of paper. Without
objection, your written statements will be made a part of the
record, and you will now be recognized for 5 minutes.
Thank you, Reverend Pope.
STATEMENT OF REVEREND REGINALD A. POPE, PASTOR, BETHEL
MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH
Rev. Pope. Thank you.
Chairwoman Waters. Speak right into the microphone and
speak up so they can hear you way in the back, Reverend Pope.
Rev. Pope. Honorable Congresswoman Maxine Waters, members
of the Subcommittee on Housing, community members and friends,
my name is Reginald A. Pope, Pastor of the Bethel Missionary
Baptist Church, located about one half mile from the Jordan
Downs Housing Facility.
As a person who has served this community over the past 32
years, I am very concerned about the possibility of the Jordan
Downs Housing Projects being redeveloped. Rumor has it that
plans are being made to completely redevelop the area and, if
so, it is vitally important that all entities in the community
have a say in the planning process. Redevelopment will affect
families of our congregation who reside in the complex, our
church itself which nurtures those families, and the entire
atmosphere of the community.
Therefore, let it be known for certainty if redevelopment
is being planned, who are the persons doing the planning, what
efforts have been made to adequately inform and involve the
entire community, what will happen to the residents of the
complex, what will replace the facility, and what are the
timelines for beginning and completion of the project?
Madam Chairwoman, thank you for allowing me to speak today.
[The prepared statement of Reverend Pope can be found on
page 56 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much, Reverend Pope. I
know that you have a previous commitment and that you won't be
able to stay. While I am thanking you for your testimony, let
me thank you for your love of this community, your service to
the community, and the open doors of your church that we all
visit on a regular basis and I will be with you for this, I
think, weekend where the conference takes place. We depend on
you. My last appreciation is about the transportation that you
have provided for the attempts that we have made to do job
training with the fiber optics class. I want to tell you that
was very much needed and appreciated by all who were the
beneficiaries. Thank you so much, Reverend Pope.
Rev. Pope. Thank you very much.
Our next panelist will be Mr. Keith Henderson, the Business
Manager, Jordan Downs Resident Management Corporation.
STATEMENT OF KEITH HENDERSON, BUSINESS MANAGER, JORDAN DOWNS
RESIDENT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION
Mr. Henderson. Good afternoon, Congresswoman Maxine Waters.
Chairwoman Waters. Good afternoon.
Mr. Henderson. We welcome you with firm handshakes and open
arms. My name is Keith Henderson, and I am the business manager
of the Jordan Downs Resident Management Corporation (RMC). I
was elected 3 years ago by the residents to represent the
residents of the housing development. What I do as part of the
RMC is address concerns of the residents and take those
concerns to the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles.
We also plan events for the residents of Jordan Downs with the
help of the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and
Parks and the Los Angeles WorkSource Center.
Today, I am here to speak about the redevelopment process
of Jordan Downs Housing Development and all the issues attached
to it. As far as what I know about the situation, I do not know
anything yet about any plans to redevelop Jordan Downs.
However, I have heard many things about it, such as talk about
tearing down all 700 units and building half of them back,
leaving the other half of the residents to fend for themselves.
But if and when I get information as a community leader, I am
the first one to let the community know.
I feel that there needs to be beautification such as
painting the inside and outside of the dwellings. This will
improve the look of Jordan Downs so it will not look so much
like a Federal penitentiary. Now, as far as redevelopment goes,
redevelopment can be anything from breaking down bricks to
adding a fishing pond in the park. We, as the RMC, do not know
what is really going on but we are obligated to ask and do all
the work necessary to become well-informed. We are here to
listen and see what happens next.
I personally would like to see the factory adjacent to
Jordan Downs torn down so we can improve the overall look
because it is located literally in the middle of Jordan Downs.
But the main issue to me is if we can't break down the issues
going on inside the development right now, then rebuilding will
be useless because we will have the same issues after the
overall redevelopment.
In other words, it would be like a new house with old
plumbing. These issues I speak of range from the high
unemployment rate to Black on Black crime, Brown on Black
crime, police harassment of residents, as well as the new gang
injunction which I believe is unjust and discriminates based on
race.
Lastly, I would add if anything has materialized, as far as
any redevelopment plans, then as a board member I would have to
ask that whomever is doing the redevelopment that we
immediately be informed and have monthly meetings telling us
what is going to happen, who is involved, who is responsible
for what, and what is to come in the future. Most importantly,
if there are any jobs involved at any level, residents should
be given first opportunity for those jobs.
Also, if there are any plans to temporarily relocate
residents, they should remain in the community and be give the
first opportunity to return to Jordan Downs. And of the utmost
concern to me, if there are any plans developed, I would hope
no units are reduced. If anything there should be more units.
Thank you again, Congresswoman Waters, for having me
testify here today.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Henderson can be found on
page 42 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you so much Mr. Henderson, not
only for being here today, but for your leadership. My staff
and others all know of what you are doing and we appreciate it
very much. I am sure the residents here appreciate the kind of
leadership that you are providing as the business manager.
Thank you.
Next I am going to call on Mr. Marlo Jones, fondly known as
Bow Wow. I thank you for being here today, Mr. Jones, but I
thank you more for the work that you do on preventing gang
violence. Thank you for the work that you do with Mr. Greg
Thomas and the CUSH organization. I welcome you and your
comments and your thoughts about this rumored redevelopment.
STATEMENT OF MARLO JONES, RESIDENT, JORDAN DOWNS HOUSING
DEVELOPMENT
Mr. Jones. Good morning, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and
committee members. My name is Marlo Jones aka (Bow Wow), and I
have been the gang intervention specialist for Jordan Downs
Housing Development for the past 4 years. As you know, the 700
units in Jordan Downs provide housing to low-income families
who desperately need this assistance.
Two months ago, I attended a meeting at Jordan Downs
sponsored by SCLC and other organizations. I was surprised to
hear about the possible reconstruction of Jordan Downs. Why are
there rumors of possibly tearing down the 700 units in Jordan
Downs? What is the motive? Why is the Housing Authority picking
on our projects? Why isn't the Housing Authority investing
money into our projects resources instead of surveillance
camera equipment? Our residents here at Jordan Downs do not
have a clue or understand what is going on.
We would like to know the truth! If the residents at Jordan
Downs are relocated, how and when will we find out? Will you
already have a plan for relocation? Will we be relocated to
Palmdale, or Lancaster, California? If so, the residents will
face many inconveniences, such as housing, transportation, and
law enforcement problems. What finances will be provided to the
residents when and if relocated? Finances such as monies for
higher rent, for moving, for transportation costs to stay
connected to family and friends? Our supermarkets, schools,
laundromats, and other stores are conveniently located near our
homes.
How do you adapt, moving residents who receive county aid
and other services to a new area outside Los Angeles? It is
very traumatic moving from a mini-community like Jordan Downs
to a desert like Palmdale or Lancaster. The residents need
leadership if all the residents are relocated to another area--
Chairwoman Waters. Excuse me one moment, Mr. Jones. Slow
down a little bit. Our translator is trying to keep up with
you. Our recorder is trying to keep up with you, so slow down
just a little bit.
Mr. Jones. Okay. If all of the residents are relocated to
another area, the services that they receive will no longer be
available to the people who need the help. I feel that the
people in the community of Jordan Downs will be harmed and feel
rejected. I would like to end with, please be conscientious
when making all your decisions. We are underprivileged humans
already.
Thank you for your time and consideration to our concerns
and thank you, Congresswoman Waters, for having me today.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Jones can be found on page
49 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much for being here.
All right. We have Mr. Henry Broomfield, the chair of the
Watts Neighborhood Council. I want to thank you for your
service. I appreciate those persons who take time out of their
lives to provide leadership for the community. It is not easy.
I know that but those of you who decide to do it are very much
appreciated and I thank you for it.
Mr. Broomfield, please share with us your testimony for
today.
STATEMENT OF HENRY BROOMFIELD, CHAIR, WATTS NEIGHBORHOOD
COUNCIL
Mr. Broomfield. Good morning, Congresswoman Waters, and
committee members. My name is Henry Broomfield, and I am the
chair of the Watts Neighborhood Council. I am here today to
express the thoughts and concerns of the Council and the
community that we represent.
First, I want to thank Congresswoman Waters for having the
foresight to hold this hearing right here in the community and
for making sure that members of the community have the
opportunity to address this issue that is so important to them.
As a Council, we have heard concerns and had questions
about the possible redevelopment of Jordan Downs at almost
every monthly meeting. People are scared, nervous, and dismayed
because of all the rumors floating around our community. We
want to know what the City is planning. Are they planning to
remodel or tear down? If remodel, what structure will they do
it in? Will it be portions that will move people to other units
during the process or as a whole and re-locate everyone at the
same time?
The Watts Neighborhood Council is very displeased with the
Housing Authority because they have allowed so many rumors to
go unchecked for so long. In their consideration of
redeveloping housing projects in South Central Los Angeles,
they have created fear and increased distrust in the community.
They have caused dismay and made it difficult for active
leaders to address resident concerns. Our purpose as a Council
is to bring the community together, to encourage the community
to be involved. How can you do that when people don't know
where they will be living month-to-month?
Most of the questions that we had have been answered.
Therefore, the question is, will they be moving half of the
residents to Palmdale and Lancaster, remodeling their units,
and when they are done, moving them back in? Then moving the
other half out to Palmdale and Lancaster and bringing them back
once the second half is completed?
At the end of the statement, what I want to say is that our
major concern is if it is going to be in development and when
it will be in development that the community and our youth have
the opportunity to have good jobs with this, not only building
but clerical work and different types of work.
I want to thank you and the staff for allowing me to speak
today. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Broomfield can be found on
page 38 of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you so much. I really appreciate
your being here.
Next we are going to hear from Mr. Oscar Neal, chair of the
Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce. Thank you again for
coming. The Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce is important
to us. Ms. Edna Aliewine is an old friend of mine. I can't tell
you how far back we go, because then you would know how old we
really are. I appreciate the time and effort that has been put
in by the Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce. You never left
this community. You stayed with us and I do appreciate it. Mr.
Neal, we would like to hear from you.
STATEMENT OF OSCAR NEAL, CHAIR, WATTS-WILLOWBROOK CHAMBER OF
COMMERCE
Mr. Neal. Thank you, Congresswoman Waters. My name is Oscar
Neal. I am the owner of Jordan's Cafe, and have been a resident
of Watts since 1944, a graduate of Jordan High School, and also
the chairperson of the Watts-Willowbrook Chamber of Commerce. I
became aware of rumors at the beginning of the Dana Strand
which you heard kind of at the top of the meeting here. This
was approximately the year 2001/2002. In turn, they tore Dana
Strand completely down to the ground.
At this particular time, there were quite a few rumors that
the City of Los Angeles was trying to get out of the landlord
tenant business and in turn of the displacement of the
residency was that they were displaced by choice throughout the
United States. Some went to Texas and some went to other
locations.
If the Jordan Down plan is a mirror image of the Dana
Strand plan, I would say that basically you are looking at
displacement and you are also looking at an impact on
businesses, an impact on the schools, and also an impact on the
churches because there will be a certain amount of vacancies
that will happen.
At that particular time, for some reason I don't know, and
I thought that basically the other public housing units
throughout the Los Angeles area was informed as to what was
going on in Wilmington in reference to Dana Strand. The Dana
Strand project I am sure one of the representatives that was up
here earlier would be able to give you the information but I
don't know if it has been completed. Completed means whether
the tenants have been able to move in.
I think we heard there were something like 700 tenants and
after the redevelopment there were something like 400. Again,
that was the beginning of the rumors that I heard.
As far as the redevelopment, one of the things we have to
realize in the Los Angeles area, vacant space in Los Angeles is
very, very competitive because on one side you have the school
system that I think is trying to build 14 new schools and on
this side you have redevelopment of public housing in Los
Angeles.
The interesting thing that I heard earlier was that if we
have 200 vacancies in Jordan Downs, the displacement of people
from Nickerson--I mean from Jordan Downs. If we have 200
vacancies in Nickerson, could we kind of compromise and can we
fix it up? I don't know. That is just a question.
The other thing that happens is that housing in the Watts
area 1,800 square feet is selling for near $400,000, which
means that you are talking about a household income of
$120,000. I think along with redevelopment means upward
mobility which means we are talking about people who should be
making in excess of $20 an hour. I think if we are looking at
that, the timeline of completion if we started today, I am sure
we are looking at 7 years before the project would be
completed.
We are talking about a vacuum of 6 years. In turn, there
should be a certain amount of training that is done. Then there
should also be looked into a forgiving system. A forgiving
system might be one where we know that we have a substance
problem in the United States. It might be that there is a job
that comes available and I didn't pass the test but I should be
allowed to go back 3 months or 6 months to reapply for the job
and see if I quality. I think with the redevelopment you are
looking at many different aspects that impact the community.
Certainly once the redevelopment process starts, if it
happens, we would have more spendable income in the area. We
would have a certain degree of pride of ownership. Again, my
statement to the committee is one basically that the rumors
started basically back in 2001 as far as I am concerned.
Again, I would like to thank the committee for allowing me
to have a few minutes to speak.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Neal can be found on page 55
of the appendix.]
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you so very much, Mr. Neal. How
old is the restaurant?
Mr. Neal. We opened in 1942.
Chairwoman Waters. Wow.
Mr. Neal. We have been around a long time. I graduated from
Jordan High School in 1955 and I went to my 50th high school
reunion in 2005.
Chairwoman Waters. Wow. That is what you call commitment.
Thank you very much.
Chairwoman Waters. I will take a few minutes to ask a few
questions of our witnesses who appeared before us today.
Mr. Henderson, would you take a moment and describe for me
the kind of fear and uncertainty that you and others have
alluded to because of the rumors. What is it people say? How do
they express their concern?
Mr. Henderson. Well, basically, Congresswoman, the fear and
uncertainty comes from actually not knowing. The thing is when
they toss around ``redevelopment'' so loosely, redevelopment
can be anything. The first thing that the average person thinks
about, though, is basically tearing down the bricks. Like I
said, it can be anything from painting the inside and outside
dwelling to adding a fishing pond. That is what redevelopment
means. It has a lot of commas up under it.
I don't want anybody to actually get scared, but they have
to be aware of what is really going on because eventually, if
the land hasn't been acquired, it will be. We just need to be
prepared as residents to basically step up. When I say step up,
I mean on a whole other level, a financial level. A lot of
people's credit is not good so the fear and uncertainty come
from actually just living.
Some people made bad decisions in their lives that they are
trying to basically recant for right now so that is what I mean
by the whole uncertainty of it. The average person feels that
they might get relocated to the valley, you know. That is not
cool. My thing is I have been around for 20-plus years here. I
don't know if that is a blessing or a curse.
I would call it a blessing, you know, thanks to my mom and
my grandmother and all that. Basically I grew up looking at
everything that has happened from the respect level of the
youngsters to the disrespect level of the youngsters today. It
is all based on if we have our stuff really together then we
should be able to elevate.
Chairwoman Waters. Have you thought about the best way to
disseminate information and keep people involved with the facts
so that the rumors don't create all of the fear and
uncertainty? Have you thought about what the housing authority
can do to create the kind of communication with the residents
that will keep them updated with facts?
Mr. Henderson. Well, the first thing that I can actually
say about that is as the RMC, we need to establish a Web site.
Everything is becoming digital now. Everybody is using
computers but through the old way how we normally do we
normally flyer the neighborhood. For the most part we do have a
positive turnout but we have to recognize that some of our
youth and some of the parents of the youth are actually working
so they can't attend certain meetings. Do you know what I am
saying?
So the Web site is the first thing that I can think about
that would actually be updated with the truth. I don't know who
is going to establish it. I would head that but I need to find
out how to go about basically maintaining it and getting the
truth from these top people because as a board like basically
we are on the totem pole. We are on the bottom of it as far as
with politics. I feel that with the proper education and all
that, we can be vastly brought up to standard so we as a board,
me, Sandra, Claudia Moore, Michael Augustine, we can actually
get it out to the people fast because it is a necessity to know
and not have people running around here like chickens with
their heads cut off, per se.
Chairwoman Waters. Mr. Broomfield, thus far we have had Mr.
Montiel here, and I have tried to ask him as many direct
questions as I could think of to deal with the rumors. Do you
think that some of the rumors have been cleared up with his
testimony today?
Mr. Broomfield. Yes, ma'am. I think all the rumors have
been cleared up. We know there is no project on the table at
this time.
Chairwoman Waters. I am sorry. Somebody is asking you to
speak up.
Mr. Broomfield. Yes, ma'am. Things have been cleared up for
me today. A lot of the questions I had were about how they were
going to proceed on the project. I know now there is no
project, and I know there is no funding for a project, so all
the rumors that have been spread around have just been rumors.
Chairwoman Waters. That is right. Mr. Broomfield, I just
had some advice about how to communicate better. The Web site
which I think is absolutely good thinking based on the
dependence on new technology and the fact that people are
involved in that. Do you have any other thoughts about how
there could be better communication with the housing authority
so that rumors could be dealt with quickly and facts could be
disseminated quickly so that people don't go around in fear
that they are going to get shipped out of here to some other
county and lose their ability to stay in their units. Do you
have any thoughts about what else could be done?
Mr. Broomfield. Yes, ma'am. I do. Myself and my co-chair,
Betty Day, we are forming a Web site. Not only are we forming a
Web site, but we have a newsletter called the ``Watts Voice.''
We are sending information out to the community each and every
month. We are in the process of building our Web site now as
this gentleman next to me, Mr. Henderson, stated, and that is
what it is going to take to get the word out. We are not going
to be able to stop all the rumors but attend more meetings in
the community, more organizations in the community come
together as one so we can go back to our people and tell them
this is true and this is not.
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you. Is Ms. Betty Day in the
audience? Would you please stand up? We want to say thank you
for your service and your work also. I think the Web site is a
good idea. Knowing what I know about you, even if you had no
Web site, you would still get the word out if you can. I know
you, Betty Day. Okay.
All right. Let me ask Mr. Jones, has this hearing been
helpful in answering some of the questions that you have heard
out in the community about what is going on? Has this helped at
all?
Mr. Jones. Yes. It cleared up a lot of rumors. This is much
needed by the people, as far as myself, too. The answers to the
questions were right on point. By the time the day is over
with, there will be more rumors about the facts.
Chairwoman Waters. Rumors about the facts?
Mr. Jones. Rumors about the facts.
Chairwoman Waters. Do you have any thoughts about how we
can create better communication to keep the rumors at bay and
get the facts out? What else can we do? What else can the
housing authority do?
Mr. Jones. I mean, set up a committee as far as possibly
have some meetings for updates on the redevelopment process.
Chairwoman Waters. Mr. Henderson, you have a number of
officers that are in the corporation, the resident management
corporation. Are they in the room today?
Mr. Henderson. Yes. We have my president, Cassandra Savage.
She is here.
Chairwoman Waters. Hello. Good to see you. Will all of the
officers of the Resident Management Corporation please stand.
Who else is in the room?
Mr. Henderson. Ms. Moore. I don't know if Claudia Moore is
here, but if she is not here, she is definitely here in spirit,
because she has been down so we do want to give a hand clap for
her, too.
Chairwoman Waters. There is Claudia. Stand up Claudia
Moore. That is one of my old friends. She started out with us
at Project Build. How many years ago, Claudia?
Ms. Moore. It has been a long time.
Chairwoman Waters. Go ahead and tell them. You don't want
them to know how old you are--35 years ago we started. It is
good to see you. Thank you.
All right. Is it possible that you could think about the
corporation in conjunction with some others maybe in the
community setting up a regular communication about this issue
in addition to all the other issues you talk about but simply
an ongoing update on the development question. Is that
possible?
Mr. Henderson. Yes, everything is possible. The thing is we
have to have information to do it. As long as that happens, as
long as that is getting basically handed to us, then us as a
community and as a board we are obligated to give it out to the
public and that is where everybody in the neighborhood who
don't really pay attention to politics--it is a way of speaking
on both levels. Basically politicking is this right here but we
still have the brothers and sisters who don't pay any attention
to politics, so we still have a way to communicate with them,
too.
Also, Chairwoman Waters, I want to mention one more member
on my board, Clara Niece Moore. She has been sick. That is what
I was talking about. She has been sick and down so I would just
like to say get well soon and we will see you, you know.
Chairwoman Waters. Absolutely. Our thoughts go out to her.
We want her to get well and we appreciate her volunteering and
her help in helping to make Jordan Downs the best we can
possibly make it.
Mr. Neal, do you have any other ideas? You see people all
the time. They are in and out and the restaurant is where
conversation goes on. Do you have any thoughts about how we can
better communicate?
Mr. Neal. I think that inclusive of all of the public
housing, I think if all of them communicate, we can put to rest
not only rumors at Jordan Downs but rumors there are only 200
vacancies. You know, that is a lot of questioning right there.
How can you have 200 vacancies? That is what started it. When
people start seeing things being boarded up, they think the
City is planning on making some drastic moves and there are a
lot of boarded up places in Jordan Downs. I think the thing
about it is networking and communication between all areas, all
organizations that represent the Watts-Willowbrook area. I
think if they communicate a little bit, we can dispel a lot of
rumors.
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much. I would like to
thank this panel for coming out today and for sharing with us
information that I think is very helpful not only to the
housing authority but for those of us who have the
responsibility for public policy in Washington, D.C.
I am going to deviate a bit from the normal way that these
kinds of hearings are done in Washington, and I am going to ask
some questions of the audience. I have to also put something in
the record. We note that some Members who are not here today,
Members of Congress, may have additional questions for this
panel which they may wish to submit in writing. Without
objection, the hearing record will remain open for 30 days for
Members to submit written questions to these witnesses and to
place their responses in the record.
Before I dismiss the panel, I want to address the audience.
I would like to see the hands of people who actually live in
Jordan Downs. Great response and great participation, and I am
so very pleased that you are here.
I would also like to ask the audience by way of show of
hands how many people have been frightened by the rumors that
you have heard. I am going to ask some general questions of the
entire audience in the way that I just asked those two. Do you
believe there is room for development at Jordan Downs? Do you
think this is something that may be needed that could possibly
help Jordan Downs? What do you think?
How many people think that based on what you heard, that if
the land was acquired, the new buildings went up, the people
from the old buildings moved into the new buildings on a
phased-in basis, and that it is one-for-one replacement and
everybody who lives in Jordan Downs would have an opportunity
to live in the new building, how many people think that is a
worthwhile project?
How many people trust that the housing authority can really
get that done? How many people would be willing to be involved
in helping to make decisions about any proposed development
such as whether or not there would be more density, as you
heard alluded to, how much green space there should be, whether
or not there should be a 3- or 4-story building, whether or
not, whether or not. How many people believe that it is
important to be involved in that kind of planning and would be
willing to do it?
How many people believe that you can make the final
decision about any development? Not simply the size of the
development, the architecture design, the green space, but you
can decide whether or not there is any development or not? How
many people believe that?
How many people know and understand that it is your right
to decide whether or not there is a kind of development that
has been talked about? How many people would be willing to get
the information, look at it, and say, ``I don't like it. I
don't think it works.'' Or to say, ``I kind of like this. I
think it has possibilities. I think it works and I want to work
with it.'' How many people are willing to go along and either
support or not support? How many people?
How many people feel just a little bit better today because
of this hearing? How many people know and understand that
unless you are involved, and unless you make this decision,
Maxine Waters doesn't intend that they get a dime from
Washington or anyplace else? How many people can understand
that?
Okay. What we are going to do is, we are going to ask Mr.
Montiel to come back up. Thank you for being here, Mr. Montiel.
Give him a big round of applause. Now, I'm going to ask Mr.
Montiel to do something that I think is very, very easy to do.
I would like you to get with our panelists who have
participated here today and the management corporation, which
includes Mr. Pope, Mr. Neal, etc., CUSH and Mr. Jones, etc.--
everybody--Mr. Broomfield. Come up with a way by which you can
have an ongoing meeting or meetings to keep them informed and
updated on every step that has been thought about. Can you do
that? Would you be willing to participate in some kind of
ongoing interface with Mr. Montiel? All right.
Mr. Montiel, we know that as in any organization you have a
lot of personnel and they are assigned to do a lot of things
but I am going to ask you to do me a favor. For the first three
meetings, I want you there. Can you do that?
Mr. Montiel. I can do that.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. Okay. Then after those three,
if the people you are meeting with feel as if you don't have to
be there, that you can send someone, would you allow them to
decide that?
Mr. Montiel. Absolutely.
Chairwoman Waters. All right. Do you think we can do this?
All right. I forgot to mention before we go that a young
councilman from Compton is so interested in what is happening
not only here at Jordan but with all of the public housing
developments throughout the City that he came today. Please
welcome Councilman Isadore Hall.
This hearing has drawn a lot of attention. Just as you saw
Mr. Parks here, we have another candidate who is running for
the State Senate, who was in one of those caucuses this
morning, and the last thing he said to me when I left is, ``I
am coming too.'' He is in the back of the room, Mr. Roderick
Wright.
Now, I like the idea that elected officials are showing up
because we must all be held accountable. We must all be held
accountable. We know that sometimes life is a little bit
difficult and it is not what most of us would like to have.
Sometimes we have to roll with the punches. We have to live
with some of the cards that are dealt to us in life. Many of us
believe that with self-determination, with the belief in self,
with the love for family and community, we can do better. We
can do better. I believe that and I know a lot of you believe
that. I know that sometimes you feel as if you have been
abandoned. I know that sometimes you feel as if you are being
harassed.
I know that you feel that somehow the sun doesn't shine
down here at Jordan Downs but I want you to know that even
though you don't see everybody all the time, that we are
fighting on public policy to make sure that the Federal
Government understands that no matter what happens there must
always be public housing units available for people in this
country. We do everything that we can and we are working on the
capital question that was alluded to today by Mr. Montiel to
have more money for renovations and repairs to make public
housing units more livable.
I wish that I had an answer for the crime that too many of
us are fed up with and sick of. We know as long as we have a
lot of young people who feel as if they have been dropped off
of America's agenda, that they have nowhere to turn, that they
have no jobs and nobody cares and they are anonymous and they
can do what they want to do, we are going to have problems.
All of the elected officials have to work harder for job
creation, for job training to open up opportunities. And you
have to tell them if they are not in school, they better get
over to the Maxine Waters Employment Preparation Center and
learn something. We have some people we are going to meet with
today to try and see if we can't revitalize the fiber optics
training that pays so well if you get that kind of training. We
want folks to try, just try.
The harder you try, the harder people around you will try.
We want you to know that you have a right to be assisted by
your government and some of us believe very deeply in it. We
have a lot of successes. There are people in this room who
started with Project Bill many years ago who own their own
homes. Greg Brown, where are you? Where is Greg Brown? Greg?
There is Greg. Greg started with Project Bill. He is a
homeowner. He is one of the activists of the community looking
out for our young people, working in several housing
developments. Claudia Moore and others.
We have had successes and we have had losses. Every time I
come to Jordan Downs my heart just falls because I think of
High T and Ray Ray and the young people that we worked with who
didn't make it. But, you know, because of the losses, that
means we have to try to do better so that we prevent more
losses. I want you to know that I am proud of you just for
being here today because you know what? A lot of people said
that nobody would come, but look at this room; it is full.
Your presence today sends a powerful message. I want you to
know that I and others are going to stay in step and in tune
and at every meeting that Mr. Montiel has with those of you who
are going to do the follow-up to keep up with the information
about the development, I am going to have a staff person there,
too. I may be in Washington, but we will have a staff person
there, too.
With that, guess what? Our Congresswomen from the adjacent
district just walked in the room. She, too, was at the caucus
this morning where she received support for the endorsement of
the Democratic Party. She was recently elected to the 37th
Congressional District. As you know, that part of the District
adjacent to this one was represented by Congresswoman Juanita
McDonald, who passed away. Ms. Richardson was in the State
legislature. She quickly moved and stepped up to the plate, and
hit the ground running. She is doing a great job.
What I love about her presence on Capitol Hill is that she
does not mind me crossing over the lines to work not only with
Jordan but with Nickerson and Imperial Court and with Gonzaque.
I don't mind her crossing over to work with Jordan and Avalon
Gardens. We are working together for all of our housing
developments. Welcome, Ms. Richardson. The microphone is yours.
Ms. Richardson. Thank you, Congresswoman Waters. First of
all, let me say that I apologize for not being here earlier. As
she said, I was at a meeting and my part just finished. I just
came here to say a couple of things. First, you need to know
how blessed you are. Not only do you have Congresswoman Waters
who represents this area, but she is actually the chairwoman of
the subcommittee. Why that is important to you is by her being
chairwoman, any and everything that we can possibly get to
enhance this community, she is in the position to make that
happen, so let us give her a round of applause.
I just want to say that I have been fortunate, as you have
been, to learn from the Congresswoman. What happens in these
developments here are very important to us. We need to make
sure that as funds now become available, as we hopefully have a
new Administration coming forward, that we need to make sure
that all of you who have stuck in here with us at Jordan Downs,
that the enhancements and the improvements that have been long
overdue do, in fact, happen.
You just need to know, as she said, she may be in
Washington, but she has a very close and watchful eye on what
is happening here. She fought that with the new legislation
that was passed that there would be community participation,
which is what you are seeing right now. She fought to ensure
that as we make improvements, there will still be homes and
places for people to go. Those are all things that she made
sure happened.
In other places across the country, it was very common that
if improvements were done, people would be sent away. I know
rumors in my area said that old people are going to Palmdale or
they are going to Antelope Valley. Your Congresswoman has made
sure that enhancements are done in a phased way so that way our
families can still stay together. I am just here to say that I
am working with her. I have her back. I have enjoyed learning
from her and we are going to make sure that you are well taken
care of. Thank you very much.
Chairwoman Waters. Thank you very much. I want you to know
that when I told Mr. Montiel that all I could produce for today
was water, he said, ``Don't worry. I have the food.'' We have
food for everybody before you leave here today.
I would like to thank all of the staff people who are here
and I would like them to come down front. Would all the staff
people come down front. Okay. Is Mr. Mikael Moore in the room?
I would like Mr. Mikael Moore to step out here. This is a young
man who graduated from Morehouse and is working on the Hill as
my chief of staff. He is doing a fabulous job on Capitol Hill.
Give him a big round of applause.
I also want you to know with the new committee assignment
that I have, I was able to get new staff. It is very hard to
find experts dealing with everything from CDBG to Section 108
loan guarantee programs or to all of the activities of HUD
including HOPE VI, all of that. I found a young woman who is
one of the smartest young consultants I have ever met in life,
and I want you to welcome Charla Ouertatani, from Washington,
D.C.
We also have with us another young lady whom I think may be
in this part of Los Angeles for the first time, who works on
the committee, Ms. Gisele Roget. Thank you very much for being
here.
Right here in Los Angeles, working out of the district
office, we have Ms. Blanca Jimenez. Blanca, please raise your
hand.
Where is Ms. April Lawrence? Step right up, Ms. April
Lawrence. Mr. Edgar Saenz. You heard some reference to Playa
Vista. We have a huge district. Most people don't know the
boundaries of our districts. We include not only parts of South
Central and Watts. We share Watts, the two of us.
I have parts of South Central Los Angeles. I have the
cities of Inglewood, Hawthorne, Gardena, Lawndale, and I have
all of Playa Vista and all of the airport so we cover quite a
bit of territory in this district.
Also we have Anjelica. Would you please step out there?
Marty Moore, please step out. Michelle, please step out.
I want you to know that these young people, or these people
young and not so young, most of them are pretty young, are
hired by you. You are the taxpayers. You are the folks who
caused them to be able to have their job. You may call our
office to ask us questions about anything. We do constituent
complaints. We help people work out Social Security problems.
We do mostly Federal work. A lot of times people will call us
about city council work or State legislature work and we will
tell you where who to contact.
On the Federal level, we are dealing with people who are
incarcerated and people who are trying to get people moved
closer to them. We are dealing with Social Security problems.
We are dealing with all of those problems that are under our
Federal jurisdiction. We will be working on the No Child Left
Behind legislation that a lot of you are concerned about, so
feel free to call us and to call Laura Richardson. We will do
everything that we can to truly be your representatives in
Washington. Thank you for being here today. You make me proud.
This meeting is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 1:00 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
March 15, 2008
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