Thomson-McDuffie County Housing Team

1
Thomson-McDuffie County Housing Team

• Mike Carrington, Director Thomson-McDuffie
  Industrial Development
• Rev. Beverly Casstevens, Pastor First Methodist
  Church
• Dick Dozier, Developer Dozier Realty
• Kelly Evans, Director Thomson Housing Authority
  
• Rev. Fred Favors, Pastor Springfield Baptist
  Church McDuffie BOC
• Carolyn Gilbert , Executive Director
  Thomson-McDuffie County Chamber
• Rhonda Gilbert, Grant Writer  
• Linda Grijalva, Planning and Development
  Specialist CSRA R-C
• Dorothy Hart, School Board Member McDuffie
  County BOE
• Dorothy Knox, Realtor Coldwell Banker Watson
  Knox Real Estate
• Norris Long, Sr. , Habitat for Humanity

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Thomson-McDuffie County Housing Team

• Charlie Newton, Chairman McDuffie County BOC
• Don Norton, County Administrator McDuffie
  County BOC
• Don Powers, City Administrator City of Thomson
• Rev. Jim Ramsey, Pastor First Baptist Church
• Rev. John Smalley, Pastor Vanderhorst Church and
  City Council
• Miriam Smith, Director Partners for Success
• Kenneth Usry, Mayor City of Thomson
• Ursula Weisner, Chairman Pine Hills
  Neighborhood Association
• Renee Wright, Vice President First Bank of
  Georgia
• Bodie Cummings, Private Citizen  
• Fred Guerrant , Planning Director McDuffie
  County
• Rodney Lockett, Pastor Mt. Pleasant Baptist
  Church

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Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Lack of Community Involvement Diversity
• Bring on at least minimum of 3 participating
  minority members
• Complete
• Media campaign 1 newspaper article per month
• 5 published
• Sponsored USDA Housing Homeowner Informational
  Meeting
• 2 radio addresses at local station
• Neighborhood Associations in MLK and Strawberry
  Hill neighborhoods
• Participants named for Strawberry Hill Team
• MLK Team has formed and met twice.
• Actions by City on clean-up, code enforcement
  ongoing

4
Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Declining Neighborhoods
• Develop Land Bank Authority
• Formed in July
• Board members to be named in October
• Blight tax information
• Researched examples. No action as of Sept
• Notify property owners of ordinance violations
  code enforcement
• City Code Enf. Officer on sick leave since May
• Developing neighborhood rules pamphlet to
  provide residents with pertinent ordinance and
  code info

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Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Housing Stock
• Complete Housing Inventory/Survey
• Input on Inventory/Survey form
• Mapping
• Initial Housing Data Work Complete
• Detailed Mapping included.
• Original Area housing survey area.pdf
• CSRARegionalCommissionMap_HousingCondition.pdf
• CSRARegionalCommissionMap_OwnerVsRental.pdf
• Marketing Piece in Development what segments of
  housing are neededquestionnaire
• Combine Existing with Marketingused for
  Development/Developers
• Tax Credit Rejection

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Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Landlords
• Notify property owners of ordinances violations
  and code enforcement
• News article and radio addresses addressed
  focused code enforcement in Pitts Street area
• No other action, officer out on sick leave
• Research best practices of ordinances and code
  enforcement in other communities
• Information Gathered
• Derelict Housing Ordinance, Savannah
• Renter/Landlord Registry

7
Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Other Activities
• Demolition of 6 derelict houses since last
  retreat
• 30 in past two years
• New Police Chief
• Community Policing
• New Code Enforcement officer in place.
• Pinehills Neighborhood Association
• Up and running
• Positive results in area
• Collaboration between Homeowners and City
  Government
• New Focus on rental property owners in this
  neighborhood

8
Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Othercont
• Habitat for Humanity has started a new home,
  totals 6
• Mission McDuffie summer project
• 171 Kids with adult supervision, 37 projects,
  3,312 man hours
• At minimum wage, 24,012 in labor value.
• Housing Authority Activities
• College Field Trips, National Night Out,
  Combining multi-county units under one Director,
  development of capital improvement plans

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Short Term Work Plan, 2010

• Othercont
• Pitts Street Area
• Recreational Park in Pitt Street areaskate park,
  walking track, paving
• CDBG
• 2006 CDBG complete. Multi-Activity Grant,
  800,000
• Bids let for 2009 CDBG Multi-Activity Grant,
  800,000
• Awarded CDBG 2010 for Multi-Activity Grant,
  800,000
• CHIP Awards
• Pitts Street area housing rehab
• Strawberry Hill area housing rehab
• Totals 1,200,000