GOPC Executive Director Alison Goebel and Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing President Peg Moertl at the Ohio Housing Conference.
Yesterday, Greater Ohio Policy Center received the prestigious William J. Graves Ohio Housing Excellence Award at the Ohio Housing Conference. The award was given by Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing and the Ohio Housing Finance Agency in recognition of our work to strengthen Ohio’s communities; provide safe, affordable housing for low- to moderate-income families; and offer critical resources to the state of Ohio to prevent and end homelessness.
We are extremely honored to be recognized for the work we are doing with and on behalf of communities across the state. Affordable housing is a quality of life issue in all places.
As Executive Director, I accepted the award on behalf of our staff and board, but every member of the GOPC team deserves to be recognized for their contributions to the organization:
Jason Warner is doing great work leading our Revitalization Steering Committee work, which is squarely focused on state policies that advance quality housing and help rebuild neighborhoods.
Maria Walliser-Wejebe has been expertly staffing our Affordable Housing Learning Exchange for the last 1.5 years and is finishing an analysis of the housing market in Champaign Co. Maria is also helping me do an assessment of Cleveland’s Tax Abatement program, which will recommend strategies to encourage more development in underinvested neighborhoods.
Aaron Clapper was a co-author of a recent report on the housing market in Springfield, which has generated a lot of positive buzz around the state. Aaron is also staffing our Reinvention Cities Network, where so many housing challenges exist.
Erica Spaid Patras leads our CDFI work and is helping match communities with housing needs to CDFIs who want to lend. She has also just completed a report on equitable redevelopment strategies for smaller legacy cities that will be published by the Lincoln Institute for Land Policy in 2020.
Lindsey Elam, is staffing the Ohio State Resource Network, which will help 3-5 communities in 2019-2020 plan for vibrant futures; she will also be an evaluator of a major grant that 4 CDFIs are receiving to develop affordable housing and neighborhood amenities.
Meg Montgomery ensures our books are clean, our contracts are fair, and our invoices are out the door. She is the oil that keeps us running smoothly (and economically!).
We are thrilled that this award recognizes all the great work that GOPC has done and continues to lead on. Thank you, OCCH and OHFA!