Friday, June 25, 1999
Newport plans to raze housing
Petitions fail to halt program
BY SUSAN VELA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEWPORT — There have been petitions to protest the demolition of 202 riverfront public housing units, and there have been petitions to protest the possibility of relocated families moving into some neighborhoods.
But no amount of protest should threaten the Newport Housing Authority's hopes to raze the public housing units north of Fourth Street, relocate the families and sell the 12.9-acre site — for a total $70 million project, said Pat Wingo, Newport's economic development director.
“What we're proposing is really beneficial for the city,” she said. “It's to provide a higher quality of housing for a greater number of residents.”
After years of discussions, the housing authority applied for a $30 million Hope VI grant from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in May.
The money would be used to raze the public housing units now sitting on property valued at about $15 million. City and housing officials are hoping for an answer by late September or early October.
If approved, the public housing units would be destroyed in stages. Residents would begin relocating in about three years, and they would be completely gone in about five years.
Mayor Tom Guidugli, who also is a housing authority board member, said senior citizens will have a choice of moving into Saratoga Place, a facility that opened at Eighth and Saratoga streets this month.
The other residents will have a handful of options, including receiving certificates for subsidized housing, moving into public housing units south of Fourth Street and relocating to new housing units.
“The people don't want to go,” said Billie Russell, chairperson of the Resident Council. “They've lived here. Why should they be uprooted? It's a very sore note for me. It has been for four and a half years.”
The goal is to replace the 202 public housing units with about 300 new units, which would be scattered throughout the city. Some of those are a 12-house complex called Liberty Row on Eighth Street and sites at Saratoga and Sixth streets and 13th and Monmouth streets.
The 13th and Monmouth site inspired surrounding residents to sign protest petitions within the past month. There were concerns that a high-rise building was planned for that area. But Ms. Wingo said single-family housing is the only possibility.
Meanwhile, the public housing residents have been trying to stop the demolition of their community for years. The Northern Kentucky Legal Aid Society is representing them and has submitted documents to HUD on their behalf.
Those include petitions that tout the public housing community for its affordability, gym and community center, and many other assets.
“For these reasons, because there are too many people who need a safe, decent, affordable place to live, I feel that none of the apartments in the Newport Housing Authority should be torn down,” read the petitions, signed by 171 people.
Included were letters of support from Catholic Social Services, Great er Cincinnati Coalitions for the Homeless, the Salvation Army, Welcome House of Northern Kentucky and Housing Opportunities Made Equal.
There also were pictures of the housing units, smiling children on playground equipment, and flowers in yards and window boxes.
But Mr. Guidugli said he doesn't think that the protest is as strident as the petitions imply. He also thinks that 80 percent of the public housing residents wouldn't mind moving.
“We've got a great plan,” he said.
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