Vote for Homes! This year’s “Vote For Homes!” Campaign – 2008 Election activities are focused on training volunteers to help voters address the following issue: Voter Protection Transportation Assistance in the Voting Booth ID Issues Impacting Voters Vote For Homes! is a NONPARTISAN coalition registering and mobilizing thousands of people who are homeless or living on low incomes and helping them get to the polls on Election Day. The Vote For Homes! Coalition has registered 12,800 homeless, ex-offenders, and low-income people since 1999.   Dignity’s Social Service staff will help with voter registration, and the Resource Assistant will meet next month with the Voters Coalition to discuss and coordinate transportation assistance. Dignity residents and emergency housing residents who are unable to get to the polls will be transported via Dignity’s van.   Learn more...

Housing Trust Fund (July 14, 2005)   On July 14, 2005, Governor Ed Rendell signed into law Philadelphia County’s first Housing Trust Fund to help address the growing affordable housing crisis faced by low- and moderate-income residents in Philadelphia.  City Council members Jannie L. Blackwell and Blondell Reynolds Brown are sponsoring a local bill to create the trust fund. Proposed and endorsed by more than 100 Philadelphia organizations including Dignity, the Housing Trust Fund is expected to contribute nearly 275 units of affordable housing, assist more than 900 homeowners with home repairs, and prevent nearly 1,000 families from becoming homeless. The Fund is also expected to have an $85 million economic impact on the city every year. The primary mission of the fund is to support housing production, increasing it by nearly 60 percent. Also, it will leverage up to $36 million annually in outside public and private resources that would not otherwise come to Philadelphia and is anticipated to provide up to an additional $15 million a year in housing resources. The primary funding of the project will come from the doubling of fees for recording deeds and mortgages. Additionally, the city of Philadelphia has already committed $1.5 million towards the Housing Trust Fund through the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative. And, on June 9th the Philadelphia City Council voted unanimously to pass Bill #050059 and create the Philadelphia Housing Trust Fund. The State Senate must still pass enabling legislation in order for the fund to become operational.   According to Philadelphia’s OHCD, housing production, housing preservation, homeownership and resource leveraging are the key factors in addressing the needs of the city for the upcoming year. The culmination of these objectives will support production of more affordable housing and less vacant or abandoned homes, in addition to promoting private sector investment into Philadelphia’s neighborhoods.