|
Denver Hosts CitiesFirst®
Affordable Housing Roundtable By Dana Bykowski Mayor Wellington E. Webb hosted a CitiesFirst® Roundtable on Thursday, May 16th in Denver, Colorado focusing on the importance of homeownership and affordable housing. The roundtable was co-hosted by Scott Syphax, President & CEO of Nehemiah Corporation of California. The City of Denver faces many housing challenges including increasing housing prices, slower growing incomes, rising rents, and decreased affordable homeownership opportunities. Since 1990, a unique housing market has surfaced in downtown Denver in buildings converted from non-residential uses to lofts. There is an increased market for central living, especially among non-traditional households such as singles, childless couples and empty nesters. Under Mayor Webb’s administration, some of Denver’s housing goals center on expanding the resources available for housing programs and services and to preserve and expand the existing housing stock. “We are very pleased that The United States Conference of Mayors has partnered with an organization like Nehemiah to form CitiesFirst® in order to specifically address the critical housing needs in cities across the country. We welcome CitiesFirst® to Denver,” said Mayor Wellington E. Webb at the roundtable discussion. With a nationwide homeownership rate of roughly 68%, CitiesFirst® is dedicated to using homeownership to encourage growth and economic empowerment throughout urban America. CitiesFirst® is focused on giving families a chance to live in neighborhoods with strong economic infrastructures and a solid sense of community. Participants from the roundtable included: City of Denver Housing & Neighborhood Development office, City of Denver Community Planning & Development Agency, Enterprise Foundation, Denver Chamber of Commerce, Housing Authority of Denver, Northeast Denver Housing Center, Colorado Housing Assistance Corp., Mercy Housing, Downtown Denver Partnership, Buchanan Yonushewski Group, Bergwyn Perry and Rose, Fannie Mae, University of Colorado, Center for Regional & Neighborhood Action, Vectra Bank and Home Builders Association of Metro Denver. CitiesFirst® will also be holding a Task Force Meeting at the U.S. Conference of Mayors summer meeting in Madison, WI on Sunday, June 16 at 8:00 a.m. For more information about CitiesFirst®, or to host a roundtable in your city, please contact Dana Bykowski, Managing Director, located at the U.S. Conference of Mayors, at (202) 296-4094 or check out our website at www.cities1st.org. |
