People

Susan Naimark has been selected as the first executive director of Development Leadership Network (DLN) in Boston, MA. Previously, Naimark served as the director of DLN's Success Measures Project. Also joining DLN is Jim Alexander as field coordinator, and Ayeesha Lane as part-time communications specialist.

Leslie Jones is the new board president of Reach Community Development, Inc. in Portland, OR. Jones served as board vice president for 2 1/2 years. She replaces Margaret Van Vliet, who served as board president for 2 1/2 years and has been a board member since 1992.

Catherine M. Bishop and Elaine Beale have joined the staff of the National Housing Law Project (NHLP) in Oakland, CA. Bishop, who worked with NHLP prior to 1995, rejoins as a staff attorney specializing in public and HUD multi-family housing programs. Beale joins NHLP as development director. She most recently worked as a fundraising consultant to a number of San Francisco Bay Area organizations.

Peter Werwath has been named director of housing and asset building at The Enterprise Foundation. Werwath will manage nationwide programs providing technical assistance, training, and information services to support community based organizations. Werwath, an Affordable Housing Institute faculty member at Harvard University, joined Enterprise in 1983.

Carla Javits, Program Director at the Corporation for Supportive Housing, has been elected board president of the Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California (NPH). Javits has been an active member of NPH for eight years.

Funding from the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) can now be used by homeless and domestic violence shelters to feed homeless children age 12 and under (age 15 and under for children from migrant families and children of any age with disabilities). The program provides reimbursement for food and meal preparation costs, ongoing training in the nutritional needs of children, and onsite technical assistance in meeting the program's strong nutritional requirements. Meals must be served congregate style. Families do not have to prove their income. Information: Food Resource and Action Center, 202-986-2200; fax: (202) 986-2525; www.frac.org.

The deadline is rapidly approaching for the Community Development Financial Institutions' (CDFI) technical assistance awards for FY2000. Applications have been reviewed on a rolling basis since February, and will continue to be reviewed provided funds are available. The final deadline for applications to CDFI's technical assistance program is May 31. Information: CDFI, www.cdfifund.gov.

Five organizations have been chosen as the recipients of the Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence. Yerba Buena Gardens of San Francisco, CA won the foundation's Gold Medal. Silver Medal winners are: The Portland Public Market, Portland, ME; National AIDS Memorial Grove, San Francisco, CA; ARTScorpsLA, Inc., Los Angeles, CA; and Parkside Historic Preservation Corp., Philadelphia, PA. Information: Bruner Foundation, 617-492-8404; http://www.brunerfoundation.org/p/1999rba.html.

The Michigan State Housing Development Authority's (MSHDA) Home Team Advantage program has expanded to meet the needs of the elderly in Michigan's rural areas. Established in 1999 to bring more affordable housing to rural Michigan families, the program offers federal HOME dollars and low-interest loans to for-profit and nonprofit developers to construct projects in small, underserved areas. According to MSDHA, 10 percent of the units are for households with incomes at or below 30 percent of the area median income, 10 percent at 50 percent of median, and 80 percent at 60 percent of median. Information: Mary Lou Keenon, MSDHA, 517-335-2006.

Seattle will be the first city in the country to offer the Location Efficient Mortgage (LEM). [See Shelterforce #103.] LEMs address two major problems – housing affordability and excessive car use – by offering savings to homebuyers who purchase homes in high-density areas with access to public transportation. Each home is assigned a Location Efficient Value (LEV) which is added to borrowers' incomes, allowing them to qualify for a higher-priced home. Information: Fannie Mae Seattle Partnership Office, 206-684-8333, or the City of Seattle Office of Housing, 206-684-0721; www.cityofseattle.net/housing. For information on the LEM in general, including upcoming demonstration cities, see Center for Neighborhood Technology.

HousingLink is the recipient of a $75,000 grant from The McKnight Foundation. The funds will be used to support HousingLink's new housing referral service pilot program at six community-based service centers in Minneapolis. The 12-month pilot program tests a new service that connects seekers of affordable housing to opportunities that match their preferences and for which they may be eligible. Once registered, participants receive ongoing, up-to-date information about subsidized housing opportunities. The service is free. Information: Colleen O'Brien, HousingLink, 612-520-9221.

Rural Opportunities, Inc. (ROI) received a James Rouse Excellence in Achievement Award from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. Among other achievements, ROI, which serves farmworkers and low-income people in a multi-state area surrounding Rochester, NY, recorded a 235 percent growth rate in its homeownership assistance program in 1999, the highest rate among its fellow NeighborWorks® organizations.