Carrfour Supportive Housing: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox non-profit |
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| name = Carrfour Supportive Housing (Carrfour) |
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| type = [[Supportive Housing]] Organization |
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| founded_date = 1993 |
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| tax_id = 65-0387766 |
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| location = 1398 SW 1st Street, 12th Floor, Miami, FL 33135 |
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| area_served = Miami-Dade County, Florida |
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| num_employees = 100+ |
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| homepage = http://carrfour.org |
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| mission = "Carrfour’s mission is to confront homelessness by developing affordable housing and providing supportive services as a pathway to self-sufficiency. We are guided by a vision where everyone has safe and decent housing and is self-reliant." |
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}} |
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'''Carrfour Supportive Housing''' is a nonprofit organization established in 1993 by the Homeless Committee of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce. It develops, operates and manages affordable and [[supportive housing]] communities for low-income individuals and families in [[Miami-Dade County, Florida]]. Carrfour communities combine affordable housing with comprehensive, on-site supportive services. By 2012, the company had become Florida's largest not-for-profit supportive housing provider, housing more than 10,000 formerly homeless men, women and children, assembling over $200 million of financing, tax credits and subsidies, and developing nearly 1,500 affordable housing units since its founding.<ref name="carrfour">[http://www.carrfour.org] - Carrfour Official Website.</ref> |
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==History== |
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In the early 1990s, as the homeless population of Miami-Dade county grew to more than 8,000 people,<ref>[http://www.miamidade.gov/homeless/library/homeless-census-results.pdf] - Miami-Dade County Homeless Census</ref> the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce formed a Homeless Committee to find a permanent solution to homelessness. These efforts led the Chamber to establish Carrfour Supportive Housing as a nonprofit entity "whose mission was to provide both permanent housing and supportive services to help the formerly homeless successfully reintegrate into society by helping them achieve their full potential."<ref name="carrfour"/> |
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Throughout its history, Carrfour has been featured with increased prominence in local and national media.<ref>{{cite web|last=Van Drake|first=Stephen|title=Miami area rapidly losing affordable housing|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2001/12/31/focus2.html/|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=31 December 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=South Florida Business Journal|first=|title=Carrfour Supportive Housing wins grant money|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2004/12/20/daily13.html/ |
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|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=20 December 2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Pedro Musibay|first=Oscar|title=Affordable housing planned for Liberty City neighborhood|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2007/10/22/story7.html/|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=22 October 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=|first=|title=Liberty City’s Parkview Gardens Offers Innovative Housing Model for Distressed Neighborhoods|url=http://fatherhoodchannel.com/2012/11/01/liberty-citys-parkview-gardens-provides-affordable-housing-model-for-distressed-neighborhoods-111|publisher=Fatherhood Channel|date=1 November 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Gillen|first=Michele|title=Formerly Homeless Enjoy The Fruits Of Their Labor|url=http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/09/09/formerly-homeless-enjoy-the-fruits-of-their-labor/ |
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|publisher=CBS 4 Miami|date=9 September 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Jeannot|first=David|title=Once-Homeless Mother Finds Housing in Time for Mother's Day|url=http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Once-Homeless-Mother-Finds-Housing-in-Time-for-Mothers-Day-206669891.html|publisher=CBS 4 Miami|date= May 2013}}</ref> |
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===National recognition=== |
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In February 2009, [[TIME Magazine]] featured Carrfour in a national science story:<ref>{{cite web|last=Walsh|first=Bryan|title=Building Green Houses for the Poor|url=http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1879595,00.html/|publisher=TIME Magazine|date=17 February 2009}}</ref> The following year, in April 2010, former President [[Bill Clinton]] hosted a [[Clinton Global Initiative]] day of service at Verde Gardens, which includes a 22-acre organic farm. The community was built on the site of the former [[Homestead Air Reserve Base|Homestead Airforce Base]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Abrir|first=Carson|title=Former President Clinton urges renewed efforts to erradicate homelessness|url=http://fatherhoodchannel.com/2010/04/19/president-clinton-leads-cgiu-students-for-day-of-service-at-future-carrfour-housing-site/|publisher=Fatherhood Channel|date=19 April 2010}}</ref> |
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A September 2012 national wire story featured the Carrfour community as a new model for tackling homelessness.<ref name="reuters">{{cite web|last=Fagenson|first=Zachary|title=Homeless in Miami find new outlet, feeding the well heeled|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/09/us-usa-miami-homeless-idUSBRE88806G20120909|publisher=Reuters|date=10 September 2012}}</ref> |
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Also in September 2012, [[The Huffington Post]] featured Verde Gardens in a story that highlighted Miami-Dade County's success reducing homelessness by well over 50%.<ref>{{cite web|last=Lilly|first=Christiana|title=Verde Gardens Farm Program Gives New Life, Work To Miami-Dade Homeless Families|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/31/verde-gardens-homestead-homeless-miami_n_1846914.html|publisher=The Huffington Post|date=5 September 2012}}</ref> |
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==Subprime mortgage crisis== |
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When the [[subprime mortgage crisis]] hit, Carrfour, like other developers dependent on tax credits to finance construction, faced some of the most difficult challenges in its history |
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<blockquote>"Doug Mayer, VP for housing development at the nonprofit Carrfour Supportive Housing, said its Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler Manor rental project was delayed by a year because it could not secure the low income tax credits that it had qualified for. This form of financing comes from profitable companies – usually financial firms – that give cash to affordable housing projects in exchange for writing off taxes. The low-income tax credit market evaporated when the financial crisis hit last fall. 'Hundreds of projects across the country stalled because they couldn’t find a market for the tax credits,' Mayer said."<ref>{{cite web|last=Bandell|first=Brian|title=Miami-Dade housing projects hit|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2009/12/21/story1.html/|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=21 December 2009}}</ref></blockquote> |
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[[File:Parkview Ribbon Cutting, 10-30-12.jpg|thumb|Ribbon cutting for new Miami affordable housing community. Carrfour President/CEO [[Stephanie Berman-Eisenberg]], second from right, with [[Tomás Regalado (American politician)|Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado]], second from left, and Miami-Dade County County Commissioner Audrey Edmonson, center.]]Funding through the [[American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009]] enabled Carrfour to successfully navigate the financial crisis and experience the most rapid growth in the organization's history. |
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<blockquote>"The city of Miami has partnered with local nonprofits to renovate 26, one-bedroom apartments in Overtown. The project will be funded with $2.5 million in federal neighborhood stabilization dollars ... The nonprofit consortium includes the Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida, Carrfour Supportive Housing, the Little Haiti Housing Association, Opa Locka Community Development Corp., and the Urban League of Greater Miami."<ref>{{cite web|last=Pedro Musibay|first=Oscar|title=St. John Village to get $2.5M makeover|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/news/2010/10/27/st-john-village-to-get-25m-makeover.html|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=27 October 2010}}</ref></blockquote> |
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[[File:John-Laswick-Harvard-House-Grand-Opening-Florida.jpg|thumb|John Laswick, NSP Team Leader for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, speaks at grand opening of Carrfour's Harvard House in North Miami Beach, Florida. The Harvard House community was redeveloped using NSP stimulus monies provided to a consortium of local nonprofit agencies.]] |
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<blockquote>"As demand for affordable housing and construction jobs rises, Carrfour Supportive Housing is putting federal stimulus dollars to work by purchasing a distressed apartment complex in North Miami Beach with plans to renovate and deliver 56 low-cost units in 2012 ... All told, Miami-based Carrfour was granted $17 million of the $89 million that has been directed to Miami-Dade County through the NSP2 program."<ref>{{cite web|last=Pedro Musibay|first=Oscar|title=Carrfour Supportive Housing to renovate apartment complex|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/print-edition/2011/08/26/carrfour-supportive-housing-to.html|publisher=South Florida Business Journal|date=26 August 2011}}</ref></blockquote></blockquote> |
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<blockquote>"Southern Miami-Dade County will feature a new apartment complex by Carrfour Supportive Housing in December. The company will open a mid-rise, six-story, 80-apartment building at the corner of Southwest 260th St. and South Dixie Highway in Naranja. The apartment, called Casa Matias, will provide housing for homeless families and low-income families."<ref>{{cite web|last=Pedro Musibay|first=Oscar|title=Apartment Complex to Come Up in Southern Miami-Dade County|url=http://www.globest.com/news/12_12/miami/multifamily/apartment-complex-to-come-up-in-southern-miami-dade-county-306221.html|publisher=GlobeSt.com|date=19 January 2011}}</ref></blockquote> |
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<blockquote>"A distressed 1950s multifamily building is getting demolished so the site on which it sits can serve as an affordable housing complex. The $20 million development of Hampton Village Apartments will offer four-stories of multifamily housing units and services to help people better their lives. HUD’s NSP2 initiative, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, has granted nearly $2 billion to states, local governments, nonprofits and public and or private nonprofit entities on a competitive basis, with the purpose of rehabilitating distressed properties. Carrfour Supportive Housing was part of a consortium of Miami-Dade County development firms that were granted $89 million in funding through the program.<ref>{{cite web|last=LeClaire|first=Jennifer|title=$20M Affordable Housing Project Gets Underway in Miami|url=http://www.globest.com/news/12_463/miami/multifamily/20M-Affordable-Housing-Project-Gets-Underway-in-Miami-326211.html|publisher=GlobeSt.com|date=21 October 2012}}</ref></blockquote> |
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==Operation Sacred Trust== |
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[[File:Formerly Homeless Vietnam veteran with truck.jpg|thumb|Formerly homeless Vietnam veteran with truck where he lived for 18 months.]] |
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In 2011, Carrfour launched [[Operation Sacred Trust]] to specifically help prevent and end homelessness for [[Veteran]] families in South Florida.<ref>{{cite web|last=Henthorn|first=Robert|title=Initiative Aims to End Homelessness for Veterans|url=http://fatherhoodchannel.com/2011/08/04/initiative-aims-to-end-homelessness-for-veteran-families-804/|publisher=Fatherhood Channel|date=4 August 2011}}</ref> The program serves more than 1,000 very-low income veterans and their family members each year.<ref>{{cite web|last=|first=|title=Thousands of South Florida Vets Benefit from $1M VA Grant to Operation Sacred Trust|url=http://www.veteransnewsnow.com/2012/11/08/thousands-of-south-florida-vets-benefit-from-1m-va-grant-to-operation-sacred-trust%E2%80%8F/|publisher=Veterans News Now|date=8 November 2012}}</ref> |
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<blockquote>"If Gwendolyn Cutler-Isom had to describe her one-bedroom apartment in one word it would be GREAT. 'I love everything about this place!' she said. Since April, the 54-year old Army veteran has been living in the recently-opened Barbara Carey-Shuler Manor in Liberty City."<ref name="mnt">{{cite web|last=Heard |first=Kaila|title=New Apartments Help Vets Get Back on Their Feet|url=http://carrfour.org/the-miami-times/|publisher=The Miami Times|date=18 June 2012}}</ref></blockquote> |
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<blockquote>"Glenn Merryman, 58, had been homeless for nearly a year-and-a-half before moving into his apartment at the Manor in February. 'I felt like I was the lowest person in the world when I was homeless,' he recalled. 'But here they care about you and even check on you every few weeks just to make sure that you’re alright.'”<ref name="mnt"/></blockquote> |
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<blockquote>"As part of an innovative effort to tackle Miami's problem with homelessness, Xavier Wright has traded the streets of downtown for a live-in community farm project in south Florida that grows produce for an upscale restaurant. Wright, 25, said it's his first steady job in two years ... Wright, who previously served in the U.S. [[Marine (military)|Marine]] Corps in Iraq, had resided in a homeless shelter with his 6-year-old autistic son before moving to Verde Gardens."<ref name="reuters"/></blockquote> |
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A November 11, 2012 [[Huffington Post]] article featured [[Operation Sacred Trust]] as a new model for ending homelessness for America's veterans.<ref>{{cite web|last=Lilly|first=Christiana|title=Operation Sacred Trust Combats Veteran Homelessness In South Florida With $1 Million Grant |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/08/homeless-veterans-operation-sacred_n_2093151.html|publisher=Huffington Post|date=11 November 2012}}</ref> The same day, Carrfour President/CEO [[Stephanie Berman-Eisenberg]] published an Op-Ed on the [[Miami Herald]] Editorial Page highlighting the program's impact on area veterans.<ref>{{cite web|last=Berman-Eisenberg|first=Stephanie|title=A step forward for homeless vets|url=http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/11/11/3090081/a-step-forward-for-homeless-vets.html|publisher=Miami Herald|date=11 November 2012}}</ref> |
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==Carrfour communities== |
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*Parkview Gardens |
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*Casa Matias |
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*Bonita Cove |
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*Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler Manor |
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*Verde Gardens |
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*Villa Aurora |
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*The Royalton |
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*Harding Village |
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*Little River Bend |
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*Little Haiti Gateway |
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*Del Prado Gardens |
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*Rivermont House |
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*Harvard House |
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==Communities in Progress== |
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*Hampton Village |
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*Tequesta Knoll |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist|2}} |
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==External links== |
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{{commons category|Homelessness}} |
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{{Sister project links|homelessness}} |
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*[[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]], [http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/305/index.html "Home at Last?"], ''[[NOW on PBS|NOW]]'' series program, first aired on February 2, 2007. The topic was what will most help homeless people reenter the fabric of society. |
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*{{dmoz|Society/Issues/Poverty/Homelessness}} |
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*[http://chuckcurrie.blogs.com/chuck_currie/homelessness/ Homelessness], Current information on U.S. homelessness written by The Rev. [[Chuck Currie]], former National Coalition for the Homeless board member. |
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[[Category:Non-profit organizations based in Florida]] |
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[[Category:Homelessness]] |
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[[Category:Homelessness in the United States]] |
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[[Category:Humanitarian aid]] |
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[[Category:Socioeconomics]] |
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[[Category:Poverty]] |
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[[Category:Charities based in the United States]] |
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[[Category:501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations]] |
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[[Category:Organizations established in 1993]] |
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[[Category:Miami-Dade County, Florida]] |
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