From your day-to-day work, you know that the challenges facing low- and moderate-income communities in Ohio are great, and that no single organization can take them on alone. The foreclosure crisis destabilized entire neighborhoods and traditional funding streams dried up for non-profit organizations. As we emerge from the recession, local organizations, governments, financial institutions, and other stakeholders must work together and think creatively to powerfully confront these issues and move our communities forward.

To continue the conversations already happening across the state, we invite you to the Ohio Reinvestment Summit on September 8th at Cleveland State University in Cleveland, convened by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition in partnership with Empowering and Strengthening Ohio's People (ESOP), Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland, the Ohio CDC Association, and Organize! Ohio.

This summit will explore many of the community reinvestment-related issues in Ohio, including abusive consumer lending, the future of real estate owned properties (REOs), and continued funding for foreclosure prevention housing counseling. But more importantly, this event will focus on bringing together critical decision-makers to create a plan of action for confronting these challenges.

We'll be joined by Senator Sherrod Brown and other policymakers, but the most important attendees at the summit will be local organizations that work on the ground and confront these challenges daily. We need your input to help craft strategies that are feasible, manageable, and impactful. 

None of us can turn the tide of disinvestment in Ohio's communities alone, and we hope you'll join us as we start thinking through and enacting long-term strategies and solutions. To be a part of this critical, action-oriented event, register by Friday, August 29. More information on the schedule, speakers, and venue are also available through the link.

Building Healthy Communities will focus on ways to leverage the human and capital resources in the public health and community development fields to create sustainable neighborhoods and healthy environments for everyone in Ohio. Given the strengths of each field and the unique funding opportunities available, a framework is in place to build partnerships and collaborations that can help transform struggling neighborhoods into healthy and safe areas for low-income individuals. Improved health outcomes lead to economic stability and vibrant, thriving communities. This one-day conference brings together experts from both fields to exchange ideas, learn about collaborative efforts, and explore new partnerships that focus on and invest in healthy communities in the state.

If you have questions or interest, e-mail Senior Policy Analyst Lisa Nelson at [email protected]. Sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and presented with Health Policy Institute of Ohio and the Cuyahoga County Department of Public Health, the conference will be held on Thursday, October 23 from 9:00am - 4:15pm at the Sheraton Capital Square in Columbus, Ohio.

On August 22, 1974, recently sworn-in President Gerald Ford signed into law, the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (HCDA). President Ford's signing statement quoted Senator John Sparkman (D-AL), Chair of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, who said the HCDA "is probably the most important legislation on community development since the passage of the Housing Act of 1949." Focusing on Title I of the HCDA, which created the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, President Ford stated, "I think we can say without any reservation that the move from the narrow programs of the past in community development to programs that are very broad gauged, a consolidation of programs such as Model Cities and urban development, will give a real impetus to local decision making, local action, and local responsibility."

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