[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 13 (Thursday, February 10, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 10, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
   HANDS: LOUISVILLE HOUSING AND NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES 
                                PROGRAM

                                 ______


                         HON. ROMANO L. MAZZOLI

                              of kentucky

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 10, 1994

  Mr. MAZZOLI. Mr. Speaker, recently, the President of the U.S. 
Conference of Mayors, the Honorable Jerry Abramson, who is also mayor 
of my hometown Louisville, KY, joined with Dr. John L. Gilderbloom, 
Director of the Housing and Neighborhood Development Strategies Program 
[HANDS] at the University of Louisville to promote new initiatives for 
solving the problems today experienced by American cities.
  While many believe that the problems of our cities are intractable, I 
do not. I agree with Mayor Abramson and Dr. Gilderbloom that abandoning 
our cities and turning away from them in their time of need is not only 
unacceptable but totally unnecessary because solutions to their 
problems can be achieved.
  The HANDS Project is a partnership involving community, business and 
Government organizations which was launched in Louisville's Russell 
neighborhood. When HANDS started, 79 percent of the Russell residents 
lived below the poverty level. The average income for a Russell 
neighborhood resident was $4,800 and the unemployment rate was resting 
at 65 percent. Needless to say, the conditions in this neighborhood 
were desperate.
  The city of Louisville, led by Mayor Abramson, invested millions of 
dollars in infrastructure improvement in Russell. Local business 
leaders from Louisville and Jefferson County provided low interest 
loans for homeownership and business opportunities. The University of 
Louisville, led by Dr. Gilderbloom, provided services to retrain and 
reeducate area residents.
  There is a long way to go before all the problems faced by the 
Russell neighborhood and many like it in Louisville and around the 
Nation can be eradicated. The process is continuing, but the Russell 
neighborhood is well on its way to revitalization. Some 350 housing 
units are planned for either construction or rehabilitation, which will 
create about 400 jobs, bringing an estimated $18 million in investment 
to the neighborhood.
  The HANDS Project is quickly gaining attention as a national model 
for inner-city revitalization. I am pleased, therefore, to share with 
my colleagues an article coauthored by Mayor Abramson and Dr. 
Gilderbloom describing the HANDS Program which appeared in The 
Washington Post on January 26, 1994. The text of the article follows:

               [From the Washington Post, Jan. 26, 1994]

               Ending a Pattern of Failure in the Cities

             (By Jerry E. Abramson and John I. Gilderbloom)

       A wide spectrum of political leaders and policy experts 
     argues that revitalizing inner-city neighborhoods is an 
     almost impossible task. They cite a long list of failed 
     federal programs that have done little to improve the 
     conditions of the impoverished. Their policy prescription is 
     simple: Since nothing works, nothing should be done.
       Abandoning inner cities would be disastrous. Neglect of 
     inner-city residents was a major factor in the burning, 
     looting and killing in South Central Los Angeles. Many 
     American inner cities are already at a boiling point. Neglect 
     and abandonment will only intensify the problem. People 
     without a future, hope or a life become dangerous; citizens 
     with jobs, housing and education realize a full life and the 
     American dream.
       Learning from the mistakes of the past, such cities as 
     Baltimore, Minneapolis, Louisville, Atlanta, Indianapolis and 
     San Francisco are designing programs that can revitalize 
     inner-city neighborhoods. A common thread that links these 
     bold and innovative programs is the creation of local 
     partnerships that unite business, community and government to 
     create jobs, housing and educational opportunities.
       When Louisville organized a partnership to help revitalize 
     one of the nation's most impoverished neighborhoods, many 
     observers thought it was an impossible job. In Louisville's 
     Russell neighborhood, 79 percent of the 10,000 residents had 
     incomes below the poverty level in 1990. The vast majority of 
     the families (90 percent) were female-headed. Yearly 
     household income averaged $4,800. Half the residents were on 
     some form of public assistance. Unemployment hovered around 
     65 percent.
       Despair, anger and contempt were omnipresent. Prostitution, 
     crime and drugs were widespread problems. These conditions 
     contributed to abandonment and neglect of housing. Pawn 
     shops, funeral homes and liquor stores had become some of the 
     leading neighborhood businesses.
       Given these problems, most commentators thought it would be 
     all but impossible to build even one house or create one job. 
     Today, Russell is on the verge of a miracle. The neighborhood 
     is undergoing a dramatic rebirth. Jobs and housing 
     opportunities are being created. The crime rate has been cut 
     almost in half.
       Developers and nonprofit organizations have been given the 
     necessary encouragement to build in the Russell neighborhood. 
     Some 350 affordable housing units will either be built or 
     rehabbed in the area. These activities will create 400 jobs, 
     bringing an estimated $18 million in new investment to 
     Russell. Commercial businesses have announced plans to expand 
     to relocate into Russell. Residents are also taking advantage 
     of educational and leadership opportunities. Roughly one out 
     of every 10 residents will be assisted by this partnership.
       How could this happen when so many other efforts seem to be 
     failing? The Russell partnership is a unique team effort that 
     involves government, business, community organizations and 
     higher education institutions working together. This 
     partnership uses teams that address human, economic and 
     physical development through case management, job training, 
     education, homeownership, community leadership and community 
     design services. The federal government has helped by 
     providing funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and 
     Urban Development and the Department of Education and by 
     matching local support.
       City government has provided millions of dollars in 
     infrastructure improvements, favorable loans to encourage 
     development and community policing. The business community 
     has stepped forward by providing low-interest housing loans, 
     and established developers have agreed to build attractive 
     single-family cottage style houses meant for moderate-income 
     families. Higher education has provided planning and design 
     services to builders and nonprofits, along with social 
     workers, tutors and job training for those wanting 
     assistance. Community groups have provided a broad array of 
     services, including leadership, outreach, organizing and 
     consensus building.
       The Russell revitalization effort is unique so far, but it 
     is quickly gaining national attention as a model for 
     revitalizing our country's inner cities.
       On Martin Luther King's birthday, President Clinton 
     unveiled his empowerment program encouraging cities to 
     compete for inner-city revitalization funds. Both liberal and 
     conservative commentators have been quick to denounce the 
     program as wasteful and ineffective? Yet the key principles 
     of the president's empowerment program mirror those of the 
     Russell partnership. In a time of ``doom and gloom'' we need 
     models that are proven. The Russell partnership and others 
     like it can provide them.

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