Contact: Rob Ostrander 202.224.7627 Shana Stribling 202.224.0309
Wednesday, May 4, 2005

KANSAS CITY, MO U.S. Senator Kit Bond today met with the Kansas City Neighborhood Alliance (KCNA) on their continued efforts to revitalize Kansas City neighborhoods and his work on behalf of community development projects in Missouri and across the nation.

“The foundation of a community is safe, livable and affordable housing. Good housing means economic development and jobs. It means children are safer, healthier and happier,” said Bond. “While the stability of a community starts with housing, it grows through community development.”

KCNA hopes to continue their Neighborhood Preservation Initiative in the Blue Hills and Vineyard neighborhoods and to expand the initiative in Blue Valley. In Blue Hills crime has been reduced 49 percent, homeownership has increased to 61.9 percent, housing sale prices have increased by more than 50 percent, and lending on home improvement and purchase loans have increased by 400 percent since the initiative began. KCNA would use new federal dollars to purchase and rehabilitate 45 houses and implement grass roots team-based policing.

Bond, joined by KCNA and local officials, also toured of one of the neighborhood blocks that will be affected by the Neighborhood Preservation Initiative, which Bond will work on behalf of in Washington. Bond praised the community-based organizations, local political leaders and community members in Kansas City for joining together to reclaim and stabilize the community. He stressed that by improving neighborhoods business opportunities will be expanded and an atmosphere of responsibility and pride in communities can be fostered.

“We must not only ensure affordable housing, but also work to make sure our neighborhoods are strong through education programs that work to reduce crime, increase home ownership and responsibility and to encourage people to take pride and ownership in their community,” said Bond.

As chairman of the subcommittee that funds the nation’s housing needs, Bond has led the fight to protect federal housing projects. He expressed his support for the President’s goal of cutting the deficit in half by 2008, but expressed his disapproval of proposals to eliminate critical community development programs, including the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant (CDGB) program.

Bond also stressed that plans to eliminate or reduce HOPE VI funding would be damaging to communities. This program, which Bond spearheaded in 1990, has transformed distressed communities into revitalized neighborhoods with new jobs and economic investment. In Kansas City, Guinotte Manor, Theron B. Watkins, and Heritage House have all benefited from HOPE VI.