THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, November 15, 1995 TAG: 9511150201
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MIKE KNEPLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 114 lines
Public housing has turned City Councilman Herbert M. Collins Sr. into an unusual tourist.
In every out-of-state city he's visited this year, Collins said, he asked taxi drivers to take him to public-housing neighborhoods.
But that's not all Collins has done to improve his knowledge about public housing, a subject he plunged into head first last fall when he openly and harshly criticized Norfolk's public housing operations and tenants.
Since March, Collins and Councilman Mason C. Andrews have co-chaired the Mayor's Task Force on Public Housing, a broad-based, 37-member panel appointed to study public-housing issues and make recommendations to the City Council.
``We want the public to critique them,'' Collins said. ``But I think they will be very pleased.''
Meanwhile, Andrews said the fact that the task force represented a cross section of Norfolk bodes well for public acceptance.
There are more than 65 recommendations, covering six categories: legislation, values, economic opportunity, education, supportive programs and design.
The task force did not recommend demolition of any public-housing units - an idea that has provoked fear and anger among tenants in the past.
Indeed, in response to continuing suspicions in the community, the task force's subcommittee on values included a blunt statement:
``There is a future for public housing in Norfolk. Any rumor of impending demolition needs to be refuted in the strongest terms . . . If public housing did not exist we would have to invent it. The challenge is to improve the physical setting, sense of community and support for personal development . .
More than 10,000 of Norfolk's 241,000 residents live in public-housing neighborhoods.
Collins, who previously talked about demolishing some units andreplacing them on scattered smaller sites throughout Norfolk, said:
``At this point, it would not be very prudent to do that. It takes money . federal and state governments.
``I think there's still too much density. We have to do something about that, but we have to do it in a very creative way. We don't have the answers yet.''
While the task force did not address scattering public housing, some proposals still would mean mean sharp changes in operations.
Those recommendations include: limiting the time residents may live in their apartments, redesigning the neighborhoods and buildings to make them blend better with surrounding communities, and changing rent formulas to create a broader income mix. The latter would provide more natural communities with built-in role models.
However, implementing those ideas requires changes in federal rules and the availability of federal grants.
Other recommendations - at least eight - encourage more citizen participation in public-housing neighborhoods and more partnerships with businesses and other communities. For example, the values subcommittee urged: ``expand leadership training'' including ``work on problem solving, mediation, organizing and public speaking and writing skills.''
Many recommendations aim at bolstering the education and job skills of children and adults.
Task force proposals also look to enhance opportunities for movement out of public housing. City Hall, the housing authority and business leaders are urged to commit to hiring qualified tenants and contracting with businesses created by residents.
Many proposals are not new but are endorsements of existing programs, urging that the efforts be expanded. David H. Rice - executive director of the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority - and other agency officials say that validates their programs and ideas.
For example, the task force recommended ``a consistent source'' of money for a housing trust fund that could help produce more affordable homes on the private market or assist low-income families in buying them.
The housing authority already has such a trust fund, but several years ago the City Council declined to help it. As a result, the fund contains only a few thousand dollars that hasn't been put to use, NRHA officials say.
In a related proposal, the task force recommends that all new public and private housing developments in Norfolk set aside a percentage of affordable units or contribute to the trust fund.
The task force says there needs to be more awareness of existing programs so tenants will make better use of them.
One recommendation calls for appointment of a liaison between public-housing neighborhoods and city government. Collins said he envisions the new position as a coordinator who would monitor efforts of all the agencies responsible for carrying out the recommendations.
``His power would be in reporting problems to the Council,'' Collins said. ``We've had studies and studies and studies of public housing . . . We need a guy to follow these things through.''
The task force, however, said city government should not be alone in helping tenants better their lives and neighborhoods.
``All Norfolk citizens have a stake in the health and well-being of the public housing communities,'' the report said. ``The city and all of its citizens benefit when individuals grow and families strengthen and are able to move into mainstream society.''
Collins and Andrews say they hope task-force members help promote that attitude in everyday conversations with neighbors and business associates. ILLUSTRATION: PUBLIC HEARING
The Mayor's Task Force on Public Housing will report on its first
draft of recommendations.
When: Thursday, 7 to 9 p.m.
Where: Booker T. Washington High School.
GRAPHIC
NORFOLK: FROM PROJECTS TO NEIGHBORHOODS
JOHN EARLE
The Virginian-Pilot
SOURCE: NORFOLK REDEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING AUTHORITY, URBAN DESIGN
ASSOCIATES
by CNB