November 13, 2007
Dear Settegast Community Area Residents: We are proud to bring you the November 2007 monthly update on Houston Hope, through which 14 families have now been able to buy quality affordable homes in re-energized areas of the city. Houston Hope is Mayor Bill White's initiative to reinvest in several of Houston 's older neighborhoods through a combination of stabilizing activities such as coordination of public safety programs, rehabbing existing homes, providing quality new affordable homes, and improving infrastructure and drainage. As a participant of the Houston Hope initiative, qualified buyers in the targeted areas may receive up to $30,000 in down payment assistance. Currently, the Land Assemblage Redevelopment Authority (LARA) has purchased 830 properties citywide, 185 of these in the Settegast area, where 20 families will move in by the end of January 2008. SETTEGAST Historical fact: By 1950, when the first civic club was formed in Settegast, about thirty families, nearly the entire population in the area, were present for the occasion. The City of Houston annexed the property in 1956. As a result of this, city streets and utilities improved the quality of life in this neighborhood. If you're interested in the Settegast area, please contact: Houston Habitat for Humanity at 713.671.9993 or www.houstonhabitat.org Settegast Community News: Houston Habitat for Humanity will break ground on 34 LARA properties in the Houston Hope Settegast neighborhood. The first 20 homes began in October, with expected closing dates in mid-January 2008; the remaining 14 homes will close in spring 2008. If you would like to learn more about Houston Hope, please call 713.522.HOME or visit www.houstonhopehomes.org. If you are a builder and would like to partner with a HUD Certified Community Development Corporation to build in any of the targeted Houston Hope Neighborhoods, please go to www.houstontx.gov/lara. |