Proposal for Urban Native American Housing

admin — Tue, 15 Mar 2022 09:57:09 +0000

Proposal for Urban Native American Housing at 2907 W. Irving Park Rd.

Background
In the early 1970s, protestors in Wrigleyville and Belmont Harbor demanded affordable housing for Chicago’s overlooked and underserved Native community. The protest ended in promises at the local and federal levels to construct affordable housing. However, these promises remained unfulfilled despite having one of the country’s largest urban Native populations. Few resources, if any, have been dedicated to build affordable housing for the Native community since local and federal agencies committed to doing so nearly 50 years ago.

Affordable Housing Developed by and for Chicago’s Native Community
Visionary Ventures (VV) is partnering with Full Circle Communities (FCC) to offer high-quality, affordable housing for Chicago’s Native American residents. As Project Co-Developers and Co-Owners, we are committed to providing affordable housing that reflects Indigenous culture and the urban Native community’s unique needs. As part of this, we seek your input as we form our initial proposal for funding to the City of Chicago Department of Housing for a property on 2907 W. Irving Park Road

The Urban Native American Housing includes:

100% affordable housing
Studio, one, two, and three bedroom units
Ground floor commercial space (Native American Service Provider)
On-site management, maintenance, and supportive services
Resident amenity spaces such as: community room and kitchen, garden, meditation space,children’s play area or other spaces as determined by community input
On-site laundry, tenant storage, and free on-site parking for both vehicles and bikes.

Location
The proposal is located at 2907 W Irving Park Road, currently a privately owned vacant lot. The site is a great location situated near several of Chicago’s Native American institutions, Horner Park, multiple major bus lines, and shopping.

Eligibility
All units will be affordable to Chicagoans earning at or below 60-percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), currently $35,580 per year for an individual, and $50,760 per year for a family of four. Native residents face unique affordability challenges — three out of every five Native American households are renters, and half are rent-burdened.

Project Co-Developers and Co-Owners
Visionary Ventures: a Native-led non-profit organization with a mission to work with community members to bring affordable housing, economic development via infrastructure, jobs-oriented projects and commercial and community goods and service projects, principally to disadvantaged Native Americans, in addition to under-served and low-income communities.

Full Circle Communities: a Chicago-based non-profit dedicated to providing quality affordable housing, supportive services, and property management to serve community needs. FCC has built or rehabilitated over 1200 units since its founding in 1999 and often works in partnership with specialized non-profits like Visionary Ventures.FCC sets aside 75% of the economics from every development to provide supportive services for residents.

Frequently Asked Questions
Please submit questions or comments to 2907WestIrvingFAQ@gmail.com and a member of the team will respond promptly.

Who will own the land and development?
The underlying land and overall development will be owned in partnership by VVand FCC, both non-profits. Roles and responsibilities will be outlined in an operating agreement. A Project Advisory will also be formed to guide decisions.

Will the development be restricted to Native tenants only?
The development cannot be restricted to only Native residents. But will be targeted and affirmatively marketed towards the local Native community. It will be co-developed and co-owned byVV, a Native-led non-profit. Intentional connections for tenant referrals and affirmative marketing are an important element to this development. Additionally, renters in general in the neighborhood face tough affordability challenges. 44% are rent-burdened, 10% higher than their owner counterparts.

Will parking be provided on-site?
On-site parking will be provided for residents free of charge. The site under consideration is also well served by transit. Through the supportive service program access to reduced price transit cards will also be provided. The number of parking spaces will comply with the zoning code.

Will this proposal include more than just housing? What about supportive services?
On-site resident services will be provided by a coalition of Native-focused organizations, funded in part by FCC’s service model. The Advisory will help shape the overall plan, but services will be individually focused on each household’s needs and can range from case management, to health care referrals, to youth programming.

How far along is the proposal? What is the timeline?
The City of Chicago issued its support for the concept in December 2021. The development team with work with Native community organizations, neighborhood groups, and the City of Chicago to fine-tune the proposal in Spring and Summer of 2022. Once the development receives the necessary approvals, construction will take approximately 12 months. We expect the development to be complete by early 2024.

Chicago Sun Times Article
As Chicago’s Native American population grows, more efforts are underway to build community
View Full Article

Irving Park Will Be Home To The City’s First Affordable Housing For Native Americans
View PDF

The post Proposal for Urban Native American Housing appeared first on Visionary Ventures.

Fox Valley Apartments Overview

admin — Tue, 15 Mar 2022 09:34:18 +0000

Housing Brochure

The post Fox Valley Apartments Overview appeared first on Visionary Ventures.