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Nehemiah Corporation Receives
Public/Private Partnership Award By Dana Bykowski As a member of the USCM Business Council, Nehemiah Corporation was awarded the U.S. Conference of Mayors Public/ Private Partnerships Awards in Excellence for 2001. Nehemiah and the City of Sacramento received the award in New York City at the Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting on Friday, January 25th at the Mayors and Business Council Plenary Breakfast and Mayor Vincent A. Cianci, of Providence, presented the award to Nehemiah CEO and President, Scott Syphax. Nehemiah was selected as a winner for its exemplary public/private partnership with the city of Sacramento, as well as the joint partnership program between Nehemiah and the United States Conference of Mayors, CitiesFirst®. Nehemiah partnered with Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency and Ocwen Federal Bank, a national developer of affordable housing, to open an affordable housing apartment complex with more than 170 new apartments. In addition to the new apartments, Nehemiah has also financed $12 million for the building of a 64,000 square foot Antioch Progressive Baptist Church located less than a mile from the apartments. The church is being built close to a new Home Depot hardware store and near the recently opened community center. "CitiesFirst® is just the kind of program cities need to help people obtain affordable housing and continue to build a safe and strong community through urban redevelopment," said Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo. "The work that Nehemiah has done in Sacramento creates a sense of pride for the people who live and work here." Nehemiah has also committed to building a $60 million real estate fund as an investment vehicle designed to work with the City and County of Sacramento and encourage urban in-fill projects, Brownfield redevelopment, transit-oriented developments and investments that conserve and maximize existing resources. Nehemiah has made a commitment to the Sacramento Valley by developing this community to assure "smart growth" in the valley. These revitalization efforts are part of Nehemiah and Sacramento's commitment to urban development and the development of healthy neighborhoods where families can live, work and play. "We are thrilled that the nation's mayors have chosen to recognize the accomplishments that Nehemiah has had in helping the city of Sacramento, and thousands of other cities across the country deal with the issues surrounding the affordable housing crisis. Working with Sacramento Mayor Heather Fargo has helped Nehemiah to reach thousands of families in need," said Scott Syphax. Over the years, the mission of Nehemiah Corporation has been to give homeowners the opportunity to maintain their homes and provide for their families. Nehemiah helped 4,397 people purchase new homes in key markets during the calendar year 2000. In addition, 2,387 African Americans in our key markets were able to purchase homes in 2000 through our Nehemiah Program. Since the creation of Nehemiah, they have played significant role in many successful housing initiatives across America. Since 1996, Nehemiah has distributed down payments worth more than $297 million to 100,000 families and counting. Mr. Syphax also addressed the mayors during plenary session, Housing: The Key To Economic Security, hosted by Conference Vice President Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. Syphax touched on the importance of working with Mayors to create innovative housing and urban revitalization projects through an increase in housing production, redevelopment of abandoned units, and strengthening public/private partnerships with cities across the country to do away with the overwhelming affordable housing crisis facing cities today. He also announced that Minneapolis (MN) Mayor R.T. Rybak of would be joining Columbus (OH) Mayor Michael Coleman of as a co-chair of the USCM CitiesFirst® Task Force. For additional information about Nehemiah Corporation or CitiesFirst®, please contact Dana Bykowski, at the United States Conference of Mayors, at 202-861-6764 or you can access the website at www.cities1st.org. |
