Fresh Loaf

Good news if you have abandoned or foreclosed homes on your block:

Federal housing officials have approved plans by six Georgia communities to spend nearly $36 million to combat the effects of high foreclosures and declining home values.

…

On Monday, HUD approved plans involving $18.5 million for DeKalb County and $12.3 million for Atlanta and smaller plans for Savannah, Augusta-Richmond County and Clayton and Muscogee counties.

Under the plans, emergency assistance will be targeted for specific neighborhoods by acquiring and redeveloping foreclosed properties that might otherwise be abandoned, leading to blight.

Cities and counties have 18 months to spend the grants.

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In late September, the City of Atlanta announced that it expected to receive at least $12.3 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to acquire and redevelop abandoned and foreclosed homes and residential properties.

The city’s Community Development/Human Resources committee met yesterday to discuss the issue.

Odette Yousef of WABE reports:

At a committee worksession, housing bureau officials gave the conservative estimate that the funds could be used to get homeowners into 157 homes. The city hopes that those homeowners will get mortgages that will help replenish the fund, up to 70%… and that could help save 100 or so more homes.

While that’s definitely a help, it won’t be enough to solve the problem. Yousef says the city reported 27,000 foreclosure filings between January 2006 and July of 2008. To hear and read the report, visit WABE’s site.

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The Associated Press reports:

CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama on Saturday named New York City housing commissioner Shaun Donovan to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development, turning to a former Clinton administration aide with a national reputation for developing affordable housing.

Donovan’s appointment was something of a surprise. Most speculation has centered around Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, Miami Mayor Manny Diaz or Bronx borough President Adolfo Carrion Jr.

Atlanta Housing Authority CEO Renee Glover was rumored to be on a shortlist for the cabinet position.

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At a National Commission on Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity hearing held this morning at Morehouse, officials shared some grim statistics on how Atlanta handles complaints about housing discrimination.

A panel including former U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros listened to testimony from several witnesses. The group, which conducted similar hearings in L.A., Chicago, Houston and Boston, will take the witnesses’ recommendations to Washington.

Karen Lawson, CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund, said that in 207, HUD’s Atlanta regional office received 436 complaints alleging violation of the federal Fair Housing Act — “by far the largest number in the country.”

Yet the office only took action in four of those complaints, Lawson said.

“As these numbers make clear, something is terribly wrong with enforcement at HUD,” she said. “The question for this commission is, ‘What can we do about it?’”

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