Letter to Mississippi Gulf Coast Habitat: Part 2.
I have received responses on my opinions from many sources but this morning I received a reply from Barbara Levin COO at MGCHFH, and here is what she had to add. My response follows.
Joel,
Your dedication to Habitat’s mission is commendable and apparent by the thought you have put into your feedback and the fact that you have taken the time to pass along suggestions. I am receiving them in the spirit I think you intend - that HFHMGC should be aware of outsiders’ experience and implications to the rehab portion of JRCWP and to improve any Rehab program we may have in the future.
I want to take some time to clear up some facts without losing site of your message.
The effort in Forest Heights is not and was not HFHMGC’s Rehab program it was the JRC Rehab Project. We were asked to take over an aspect of an agreement that HFHI had worked out with Lutheran Social Services and the neighborhood. Part of our constraint was to work under previous agreements made before we became involved and to bring it under the umbrella of JRCWP.
As part of the case management, homeowners signed an agreement to repay from any grants or insurance proceeds. As you know, many homes had been reconditioned in a substandard fashion and had to be redone. Some homeowners had taken out loans to redo their homes only to have that work torn out due to mold and dangerous wiring. Any funding from long term recovery efforts over a certain amount required a lien from the funding agency.
At no time was there any attempt to keep information about the project from any participant or sponsor. Had anyone asked the question or any questions about the project they would have been given honest answers. Frankly, it never occurred to me that we should specifically point out the funding to any volunteer and at the same time there was no effort to keep that fact quiet. Sweat equity was always expected but a process to track it only included the work week. Our fault came in that we used case workers to explain the scope and expectations without proper emphasis on sweat equity.
Regarding rental property being rehabbed. I know for a fact that when we pulled a permit only to find that it was a rental property and we immediately removed it from the project. I have not been able to find any evidence that we worked on a rental property.
Our literature to volunteers for JRCWP stated that the work would include rehabilitation construction and also gave a list of tasks to complete.
To understand the homeowner behavior, one needs to realize what had happened in Forest Heights and step into the shoes of the homeowner. These families had suffered more than once of being put out of their homes and had poor work done. They were understandably suspicious and cautious of what would happen through the rehab. Some who were not in FEMA trailers were no longer eligible for housing assistance so they were paying to maintain two homes once they became part of the project - one that was not livable. Homeowner behavior is something that cannot be controlled but expectations and consequences can be set. I attended weekly Homeowner Association meetings where we ironed out issues of abandoned cars, animals on the premises and unacceptable behavior. The consequence was indeed to stop work and I passed that information along to the Rehab manager and issued stop-work orders myself and met directly with homeowners who were in violation.
There is always an opportunity for improvement - from the communication, through scope of work and work relationship between HFHMGC and homeowner. Much of the “less than ideal process” took place because of the short timelines we had to perform.
Ultimately, the Forest Heights project has been a success. 30 families have moved back into safe, sanitary, secure homes. Several more will be completed in the coming weeks. We could not have done it without you, Americorps, NCCC, volunteers from everywhere, funding partners and homeowner cooperation.
HFHMGC became involved in a few rehab cases just prior to JRCWP because the need was great and we had the organizational capacity to affect change by partnering with the Long Term Recovery Committees. Our affiliate under its leadership has and is participating in many non-traditional activities for Habitat affiliates. We find it necessary because of the scope of the rebuild effort and continuing need for affordable housing. We are an open book about our activities and welcome inquiries and expert advice to fulfill our mission.
Thank you again for your dedication.
Sincerely,
Barbara Levine
My reponse is as follows
Barbara,
Thanks for your lengthy reply. All of the things you mentioned I understood before I wrote my letter and I concur with many of your points especially the dire need for the reconstruction to occur. I am glad you understood my intent to suggest some adjustments that might be made in the process.
First the financing of the process. I was fully aware of the funding and the special nature of the Forrest Heights project, however I believe you are continuing to use the grant model for funding your rehabilitation efforts. If these funds are fully repaid by the homeowners then great, but I do not believe this is the case in your current rehab projects.
As for the knowledge dissemination to the volunteers and sponsors, I was on the front lines of this and I attempted to hold your standard in my discussions with people. However in my personal experience with divulging the nature of the project, people were shocked including myself. Did you ever discuss the nature of the project with out of town volunteers? If so I wonder if the reactions would be different. I would also advice you to talk with Matt over at the stadium because he had similar encounters with volunteer groups. Although it is mentioned in your literature, it is not the expected task. Bill Morriarty explicitly stated what I, Mark, Larry, Keith, and John would be working on in Gulfport before we agreed to it. I would ask that you extend the same courtesy to your other volunteers.
Now the major factor that made me wait an extended period before writing this letter was my outrage over the rental property aspect. I have it from two different credible habitat employees that some of the properties in Forrest Heights were rentals, 117 for example. Some of the homeowners have even gone as far as to complain to staff that habitat is costing them money by not being finished such that renters can move back in. If you are unaware of these issues, you should investigate them directly.
I am aware of the need for this work to be done, and your description of the need do not go on deaf ears with me. However, because the work is there does not mean that Habitat must be the ones to do it. And since you have chosen to tackle the problem, I believe you should make every attempt to fit it into the traditional habitat mold which has as a proven track record.
Thanks for your willingness to consider my opinions,
Joel Fortgang
