September 15, 2003 - HACSA Holds Grand Opening Celebration & Open House at Camas Apartments

June 6, 2002 - Groundbreaking Ceremony to Commemorate Future Community Center and Computer Lab at Village Oaks Apartments

April 27, 2001 - Lane County housing authority receives top national score

October 12, 1998 - Disabled HACSA resident receives state award for outstanding community service

The Home Depot Sponsors Another Community “Project Playground” at Maplewood Meadows

Eugene, Oregon – The Home Depot continues it community service tradition of improving needy playgrounds and parks.  In its third year, “Project Playground” will take place this Friday, June 6, 2003 at 9:00 a.m. at Maple Wood Meadows, a low-income family development owned and managed by the Housing And Community Services Agency of Lane County (HACSA).  Maple Wood Meadows is located at 2855 Matt Drive in Eugene, just a few blocks north of Crescent. 

The Home Depot is working in partnership with HACSA staff and local sponsors Outback Steak House, Rexius, Grants Landscaping, Hinz Nursery, Smith Gardens, and Cumulus Broadcasting to bring the park to life in just one day.  Through a successful HUD Public Housing Drug Elimination Program grant, HACSA was able to make big improvements at the playground within the last few months, and changed what was virtually a mud pit into a new park with industrial-quality playground equipment.  But that still left plenty of work to be done to make the park into a safe, family-oriented completed playground.

Beginning at 9:00 a.m. this Friday, dozens of community volunteers will have their hands full replacing fences, painting, planting, assembling and installing additional equipment, and a host of other activities.  And for all their hard work, volunteers will be treated to a catered barbeque lunch by Outback Steak House.  The project is open to anyone who would like to volunteer.  Contact Cheridy Andrews at Home Depot, 344-1312, if you or your group will be there. 

Even though Maple Wood Meadows is a somewhat small community of 38 town homes, 75 children live there and have virtually no place to play other than the parking lots surrounding their homes.  This new playground is a welcome improvement and will provide a safe and fun environment for children to play and families to gather.

Over the past five years, the Drug Elimination Program has provided a number of services for residents to improve safety, reduce crime and provide positive opportunities for children and families living in Public Housing.  Grant programs have included after school programs, organized team sports, college tuition assistance, teen leadership programs, family recreation, counseling, and physical enhancements to the property to improve safety and security.  Additional services to offer economic self-sufficiency opportunities to Maple Wood Meadows and other Public Housing residents are also available through other HUD Public Housing grants.

Back to top

HACSA Holds Grand Opening Celebration & Open House At Camas Apartments

Creswell, Oregon – The Housing And Community Services Agency of Lane County (HACSA) is holding a Grand Opening Celebration and Open House at the Camas Apartments, located at 99 West F Street, in Creswell, Oregon, on Thursday, September 18, 2003, from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM.  The Camas Apartments are an affordable housing development, containing 36 units (32 two-bedroom townhouse units and 4 one-bedroom units) in four “rowhouse” buildings, originally constructed under the Farm Home Section 515 Program in the mid 1970s.

In the late 1990s, the Camas Apartments became eligible for mortgage prepayment and consequent loss as affordable housing in Creswell.  HACSA began its efforts to acquire and preserve the Camas Apartments in 1997, with acquisition in May 2002.  HACSA’s rehabilitation efforts ended with the completion of a new Community Building in the Summer of 2003.  The Camas Apartments are managed by the Neel Management Team, under contract with HACSA.

Partners in HACSA’s efforts to acquire the property include:  Oregon Housing and Community Services Department (OHCS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) – Rural Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Pacific Power, and a donation from the Seller – Chambers Corporation.

Since HACSA acquired the property, improvements have included:  a new children’s playground, new vinyl windows, new fiberglass doors, new exterior paint, new carpeting, accessibility upgrades for people with disabilities, lighting improvements and perimeter fencing, a new community room and Resident Manager’s office, enhanced landscaping, development of a community garden, contract property management from Neel Management Team, and a resulting safer and more positive atmosphere for residents and the surrounding neighborhood.

Between 2:00PM and 4:00 PM this Thursday, representatives of OHCS and USDA, Creswell City Council members, Lane County Housing Policy Board members, and HACSA staff will join residents of the Camas Apartments, residents of HACSA’s Cresview Villa (a Low-Income Public Housing complex for elderly and disabled residents directly across the street from the Camas Apartments), and community members, in celebrating the preservation and rehabilitation of the Camas Apartments.  The celebration will include refreshments, tours of the property, and public thanks you’s.

Back to top

Grounding Ceremony to Commemorate Future Community Center and Computer Lab at Village Oaks Apartments

Eugene, Oregon – Residents of Village Oaks Apartments, a low-income HUD-subsidized apartment complex in Eugene, will soon be able to enjoy the benefits of a state-of-the-art computer lab and new community center.  The Housing And Community Services Agency of Lane County (HACSA), which owns and manages the 67-unit complex, will hold a special groundbreaking ceremony on Friday, September 27, 3:30 p.m. at Village Oaks Apartments, located at 3602 W 18^th Avenue.  HACSA staff will be joined by Cameron Eldredge, the Multifamily Program Center Director from HUD’s Portland office, to take part in the ceremony.

Construction on the community center is expected to begin in December and should be completed some time next spring.  The 1150-square-foot building will house a large activity/meeting area, office space for the resident manager, a kitchenette, storage space, and restrooms.  But the highlight of the new center will be a fully-furnished computer lab.

This “Neighborhood Networks” center is just one of nearly 1,000 similar centers across the country.  It is part of the Neighborhood Networks Initiative sponsored by HUD to provide new economic and community- based opportunities.  The initiative encourages the creation of computer learning centers on site for residents, with the help of other community partners and resources, both public and private.   The lab will be furnished with at least three new computers and related equipment and high-speed internet access.  Residents will have the opportunity to: be involved in the planning, implementation, and daily maintenance of the center; develop computer skills with training that will be provided by community partners; continue their education; do homework and research projects; research and apply for jobs online; increase and improve marketable job skills; and develop the center into a successful resource tool for the Village Oaks community.  HACSA has just completed the first year of another successful Neighborhood Networks center at Fourteen Pines Apartments, also located in Eugene.

Back to top

Lane County Housing Authority Receives Top National Score

Eugene, OR, April 27, 2001 -- It’s not easy to score high with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, but Lane County’s housing authority has done just that. Under HUD’s numerical rating system, the Housing And Community Services Agency of Lane County (HACSA) received the highest score in the nation of any housing authority its size or larger. 

HACSA received 97.8 out of a possible 100 points. Of 2,718 ranked housing authorities in the nation, only 17 received higher scores than HACSA. All of the higher-scoring agencies are rural housing authorities with significantly fewer public housing units than HACSA’s 708. 

HUD ranks housing authorities in four major categories: physical condition of housing units, financial management, overall management, and resident survey responses. 

“Housing authorities in the Pacific Northwest have traditionally been high performers,” said Don Williams, HACSA’s housing director. “And while we have always been ranked a high performer by HUD, we’re especially pleased this year, because among housing authorities whose scores are final, and not just ‘advisory,’ we are the number one in the western states.” 

Housing authorities scoring over 90 points (about one in four) are termed “high performers,” those between 60 and 89 are “standard performers” (a bit less than three out of four), and agencies scoring less than 59 points are “troubled” (just two out of every hundred).

Back to top

Disabled HACSA resident Receives State Award for Outstanding Community Service

Springfield, OR, October 12, 1998 -- A Springfield public housing resident with multiple disabilities has been named the "Outstanding Resident" of the year by the Association of Oregon Housing Authorities (AOHA). Mr. Richard "Ricky" Anderson of the McKenzie Village development will receive the award at a special dinner on Monday, October 19, 1998. The award honors Oregon housing authority residents who are dedicated to advancing the welfare of others in the public housing community.

In spite of multiple, severe physical disabilities which confine him to a motorized wheelchair, Mr. Anderson visited local agencies and businesses to raise donations for the annual Safety Fair, a day-long event run by public housing residents. Mr. Anderson motored over 16 square miles in his wheelchair every day in all kinds of weather. Diligently keeping the appointments he scheduled on his laptop computer, he raised over $775 in donations.

"Ricky is the best thing that ever happened to the Safety Fair," says McKenzie Village resident Wes Eldridge. "It doesn't matter what the weather is, he just books out there and does his thing." Because of Mr. Anderson's relentlessly cheerful promotion of the Safety Fair, resident attendance at the seven-year-old Fair has steadily climbed during the last two years. This year's attendance was a record-breaking 510 residents.

"He's a great neighbor. He speaks to everyone, and watches out for all the neighborhood kids," says Noretta Southerland, another McKenzie Village resident.

In addition to his fund-raising activities, Mr. Anderson serves as the Welcome Sergeant at the local Salvation Army. He is also a gold medalist in the Oregon State Special Olympics, winning three gold medals in the 1997 and 1998 Games in equestrian sports and bowling.

The OAHA's "Outstanding Resident" Award has been given out every year for the last nine years. Housing authorities throughout Oregon, including the Housing Authority and Community Services Agency of Lane County (HACSA), are invited to nominate one of their own residents to receive the award. This year, the AOHA awards judges unanimously selected HACSA's nominee, Mr. Anderson, to receive the honor.

The awards dinner takes place during the Tenth Annual Oregon Housing and Human Investment Conference from 6-8 p.m. at the Hilton in Eugene. The press is welcome to attend.

Back to top