Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "community development"

SACRAMENTO OFFICIALS BEGIN POST-REDEVELOPMENT TRANSITION

2012-02-07T20:13:55Z

Agency Will Continue Focus on Core Competencies of Affordable Housing, Community Revitalization, and Job Creation

Sacramento, CA | Officials of the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA) have transferred assets and debts formerly held by the Redevelopment Agency to the City of Sacramento and the County of Sacramento as of February 1, the date on which all redevelopment agencies in California ceased to exist under AB 1X26, the Dissolution Act.

“We’re not going to pity ourselves over the unfortunate demise of redevelopment because there is still a great need for the things that redevelopment was able to accomplish,” said La Shelle Dozier, SHRA Executive Director. “We’re still here and we’re still in the business of serving people in need of affordable housing, and creating jobs to help grow Sacramento’s economy. We’re going to channel our energy and expertise into finding another way to keep renewing and rebuilding Sacramento’s communities so that they can thrive.”

The City Council and the Board of Supervisors each elected to serve as the Successor Agency for their respective redevelopment agencies and they are now responsible for paying the enforceable obligations of the former RDAs. SHRA will not administer the wind down activities of the City or County Successor Agencies but will provide supportive services during the transition.

SHRA has managed and administered housing and non-housing redevelopment on behalf of the City and County for nearly 40 years. As Successor Agencies, the City and County only elected to administer the non-housing functions of winding down the RDAs. Under the legislation, the City and County Housing Authorities will serve as the Successor Housing Agencies responsible for the housing assets and functions performed by the former RDAs. SHRA will continue to manage funded housing related activities on behalf of the Successor Housing Agencies including housing projects that were approved prior to June 29, 2011 when the Governor signed the Dissolution Act.

www.shra.org

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Disclosure: Angela Jones is the Public Information Officer for SHRA.

SHRA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HONORED AS NCBW BUSINESS WOMAN OF THE YEAR

2010-11-25T00:16:58Z

La Shelle Dozier, Executive Director of the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency has been named Business Woman of the Year by the Sacramento chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women.

“I am truly humbled to be chosen for this wonderful award,” said Ms. Dozier. “I feel privileged to be in a position that allows me to make a positive difference for people who are most in need of help to better their lives. I could not have achieved this honor without the support of my wonderful family and the dedication of those with whom I am fortunate to work with SHRA.”

Ms. Dozier oversees redevelopment and community development strategies in the City and County of Sacramento, and the provision of housing for more than 50,000 low income residents. She administers a $269 million budget and a workforce of 291 employees.

According to the NCBW, the awards luncheon has been the philanthropic arm of the Sacramento Chapter since the event debuted in 2001. The event supports educational programs, public service campaigns and scholarships.

More than 100 nominees were considered for Women of Excellence awards in two special categories: Business/Business Woman of the Year and a Lifetime Achievement Award. The luncheon brings together business and community leaders who gather to celebrate the accomplishments of their colleagues and was attended by nearly 600 participants.

Events planner rolls with times

2010-04-09T03:56:23Z

Sharon Gerber has been planning nonprofit fundraising events in Sacramento for more than five years. And she's never experienced such a challenging climate for giving.

She started her business, Six Degreez, after working as a community development manager for Wells Fargo.

Gerber knew she could make more money if she arranged events for corporations. But she chose to work with local charitable organizations after becoming aware of the great need there.

"My passion, my heart, goes out to the nonprofit sector," she said. "That's where I feel like I can have the most impact on this community. And it makes me feel good at the end of the day."

Since then, Gerber has developed signature events like the "Suits & Slippers" breakfast for the Roberts Family Development Center and shows such as "Blues for Baby & Me" for the Mercy Perinatal Recovery Network. Her fee for an event usually ranges from $5,000 to $40,000.

With her buoyant personality, Gerber has also developed a reputation as a community development specialist and event planner no one can say "no" to. She persuaded Sacramento City Councilman Steve Cohn and Ken Larson of Hewlett-Packard to play the Blues Brothers and Sen. Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento to dress like Neil Diamond and lip-sync to "Forever in Blue Jeans" at the perinatal event in 2008.

"She has very unique events where she tries to have a lot of fun with so-called celebrities in town," said Cohn, who's volunteered at several. "She also tends to pick really worthy charities to help out with, so you're willing to embarrass yourself."

This year, Gerber and her clients have noticed a trend due to the continuing recession: Businesses haven't been able to provide the same size sponsorships. Corporations, developers, banks and law firms that have bought $10,000 to $25,000 sponsorships at an event — with a few reaching $50,000 to $100,000 — are now giving $5,000, $1,000 or nothing at all, Gerber said.

Big corporations are also getting more donation requests from struggling nonprofits. They're coping with the increased need by spreading donations out more. That sometimes leaves companies making the same amount of donations but in smaller amounts.

Wells Fargo, a regular sponsor at Gerber's events, expects to donate to more nonprofits this year after the number of requests has grown.

"At this time, we are receiving 20 to 25 grant requests a day from various organizations, which is a large increase from years past," said Julie Campbell, a spokeswoman for Wells Fargo in Northern and Central California.

However, the company is not cutting its charitable giving in 2010. The company will give away $3 million in its Northern California region — the same as last year — and more than $200 million nationwide, making it one of the largest corporate givers in the country, Campbell said.

Cécile Mouette Downs, executive director of the Sacramento French Film Festival, said many regular sponsors — a marketing firm that's given $2,500 and a travel agency that has given $1,000 to $1,500 for several years — can't support the festival in June. Her nonprofit is still waiting to hear from donors who would have already given answers by this time in years past.

"Last year was a start," she said. "This year's even worse."

Gerber said she has always kept event costs down for clients by recruiting local celebrities to star at events, rather than building events around a keynote speaker costing $25,000 to $100,000. She's now making other adjustments so clients' events can continue to draw people.

For example, she's keeping ticket costs down by developing more unique events around cocktail receptions, breakfasts and coffees, instead of more traditional lunches and dinners.

She's using unusual locations such as art galleries and courtyards rather than hotels. Normally, half of her events have been staged in hotels. Last year, she staged only 25 percent there. This year, only one event will take place at a hotel, Gerber said.

Gerber is also making events shorter and ending them earlier — by 8:30 p.m. instead of 10 or 11 p.m.

"People appreciate that, and in this economy, they want to be at home with family," she said.

Choreographed, musical shows continue to be her most popular fundraisers. Gerber's passion for putting on a good show hit her young. She and her sister sang duets in the garage for the neighborhood, and she later starred as the biblical Esther in her synagogue's annual performance of the Purim spiel. Every year for 10 years.

Gerber said she likes to create entertaining events so everyone walks out smiling.

"At the end of the day, I get to go to sleep knowing I made a difference," she said.

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter covering business and development for The Sacramento Press.

Sacramento Building Healthy Communities

2009-12-01T20:19:49Z

On November 21, 2009, the Sacramento Building Healthy Communities collaborative hosted two events in Oak Park and South Sacramento, designed to educate communities on the 10-year Building Healthy Communities (BHC) process. Earlier this year, the California Endowment awarded funding to 14 communities over ten years as part of their Building Healthy Communities program. This effort was designed to infuse at least $10 million into each community to bring about systemic change. The efforts are to be driven by four goals:

• Health systems are family-centered and prioritize prevention.
• Schools anchor communities, promote healthy behaviors and are a gateway for resources and services.
• Human services systems are family-centered, prioritize prevention and promote opportunities for children, young adults and their families.
• Improved physical, social and economic environments in local communities.

South Sacramento was chosen by the Endowment as one of the target communities. The area includes all of Oak Park, Fruitridge Manor, Elder Creek, and parts of Curtis Park, Tahoe Park and both incorporated and unincorporated areas of South Sacramento.

Since March 2009, the collaborative has been working to put together the 10 year strategic plan for the area. Initial outreach has targeted 5,000 residents through community events, talking circles and surveys to gauge the communities’ views about their neighborhoods. Other activities have included several working groups that are focused on Infrastructure and Assets, Health Access and Youth Development..

In an industry where foundations often change funding focus every 5 years or so, the Endowment’s 10 year commitment marks an opportunity for communities to pull together long-term comprehensive planning and corresponding actions that can improve public environmental quality and health, as well as, the built environment and healthy food access to traditionally underserved communities.

This process provides a unique opportunity for this highly diverse and vibrant area that has been plagued by crime, obesity, foreclosures and disinvestment for decades. It allows the target communities to leverage the Endowment’s resources to attract additional private and public sector funding and technical assistance. In addition, the BHC initiative will help to increase civic pride and build bridges across ethnic, cultural and economic divides that have been historically difficult to create and sustain.

However, the greatest opportunity of this process will be achieved by deep and meaningful involvement of the residents, local business owners and community-based organizations themselves. As this process moves forward, outreach and resources need to continue to have significant and long term impact on these groups that ensures public safety, generates jobs, minimizes displacement, increases access to public transportation, makes streets safer for walking and biking, improves energy efficiency and rehabilitates and creates affordable housing that is of high quality.

Finally, my 5 year old son Miles attended the November 21st gathering in Oak Park with me and told the all adult working group that he wanted safer parks. Many comments had been made to that point, but none discussed the safety of our parks. Many of us take for granted the fact that our children lack safe areas in the community for recreation that they can access at all times. We must foster these activities and make them safe, clean, accessible and with many eyes on the parks and streets to ensure security.

In the end, it is all about our children. As we lay the building blocks for the future we must ensure that what we build today creates a path toward a greater quality of life for the next generation.

This selection originally appeared on the Ubuntu Green blog. http://blog.ubuntugreen.org/

Cinco de Alchemist: A Celebration of Transformation

2009-11-06T22:37:03Z

Sacramento’s Alchemist Community Development Corporation hosted a party and fundraiser to mark its fifth anniversary Thursday evening, and veggies never seemed so cool.

At “Cinco de Alchemist,” about 150 guests enjoyed delightful offerings from local restaurants Mulvaney’s B&L, The Waterboy, Taylor’s Market, Magpie Caterers, Mikuni and more. Live music by Caribbean Jazz and Musical Charis complemented the celebratory mood.

Alchemist CDC was founded in 2004 by Wendy Carter, Lisa Nelson and Chris Aguirre to promote equitable community development in Sacramento. The nonprofit group believes that the overall health of the region depends on the health of urban centers, and they are currently focused on serving the Alkali Flats and Mansion Flats neighborhoods of downtown Sacramento.

In 2007, Alchemist CDC and the Sacramento Mutual Housing Association began the city’s first urban farm stand at J. Neely Johnson Park in Alkali Flats. In 2009, they began a farm stand at McClatchy Park in the Oak Park neighborhood. The farm stands operate from May through October.

Urban farm stands bring improved access to fresh, seasonal, locally grown vegetables and fruit to people and communities who can benefit most from it. An urban farm stand is different from a farmers’ market. Whereas farmers’ markets involve many different producers selling their produce in a large area, farm stands involve a single vendor who resells produce they have purchased from various local farmers. The farm stand is smaller and less complex than a farmers’ market and requires less coordination and fewer people to operate.

Alchemist CDC also operates an internship program for youth ages 14 to 18. According to their website, the “program focuses on providing the interns with knowledge of the benefits of fresh produce to overall health and disease prevention, as well as the differences in conventional and organic produce.”

Land Park resident Fiona Castleberry interned with Alchemist from May through October in 2009, and she attended the Cinco de Alchemist party. Castleberry worked as a volunteer at the new farm stand in McClatchy Park, and she said it was especially interesting to see how a new farm stand was set up.

“I was a bit skeptical before I started,” she said. “I really wasn’t sure there would be a lot of interest there in a farm stand, but it turned out to be a great success, and I learned a lot.”

Cinco de Alchemist was held at the newly renovated Beatnik Studios. Alchemist board president Wendy Carter said they looked at several spaces in Sacramento, but knew right away that Beatnik was just right. Beatnik did seem the perfect match for the event with its simple, elegant decor and wide-open spaces with room for guests to stand and talk or just lounge on the couches.

Carter and other Alchemist board members were pleased with the success of the event. Many of the guests stayed for hours chatting with old friends and new acquaintances, enjoying wine and beer from local producers.

“Alchemist is very appreciative of the support that everybody has shown us,” executive director Davida Douglas said in an e-mail. “The event exceeded our expectations and we are thankful to everyone that made it out to the event, and to the donors and supporters.”

Yet, there was a bit of uncertainty in Carter’s outlook about the future of Alchemist.

“We are in an in-between phase where it’s getting more difficult to raise the funds necessary to continue and expand our efforts in the community,” she said. Carter cited the economy as a huge strain on the funds available through grants and on the ability of the individual donor to give.

Carter said she has high hopes for the future of Alchemist and for better food access in her community.

“One of the things I have talked about is possibly operating the farm stands year round,” she said. “The farm stands have the best produce available in my opinion, and I miss it when it isn’t there.”

Board Secretary Jessica Pearson also has big dreams for the future of the community and its access to fresh, healthy food. She sees a future where the urban farm stands have become self-sustaining, integral parts of their respective neighborhoods and can be operated solely by the people who live there.

According to Alchemist’s website, alchemy is the medieval science that sought to transform base metals into gold. The Alchemist Community Development Corporation, true to its name, is seeking to guide the transformation and growth of the Sacramento community by putting the tools to do so in the hands of the people who need them most. If the outpouring of love, community and dedication present at Cinco de Alchemist is any indication, the future is golden for this organization and the communities it serves.