LEXINGTON, Miss., Aug. 30, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) and BankPlus are pleased to announce that a $308,000 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant was awarded to Community Students Learning Center (CSLC) for its new home rehabilitation program for low-income and special needs homeowners.
The housing program is CSLC's latest endeavor, and the grant will assist 35 families in Holmes County and 9 families in North Carroll County with emergency home rehabilitation, such as handicap modifications, roof repairs, window and door replacement, plumbing and electrical repair. CSLC's goal for the project is to improve the daily lives of the homeowners, and restore the dilapidated homes to a livable condition.
CSLC Executive Director Beulah Greer and her husband, Leslie, founded the organization in 2003 to provide a positive learning environment for local students struggling in school. Inspired by their own daughter, CSLC was initially established to provide after-school tutorials to help disadvantaged children with schoolwork in order to pass state-mandated exams. Since 2003, CSLC has expanded its services to include after-school programs for students from elementary to high school, summer camps, financial literacy courses, entrepreneur courses, college preparation courses, job skills training, the Rural Domestic Violence Awareness program, the Mississippi Parent Information and Resource Center program, and the Carol M. White Physical Education Program, which was established to fight childhood obesity in Holmes County.
Mrs. Greer explained that the new home rehabilitation program will work hand-in-hand with CSLC's financial literacy and job training courses. CSLC will also offer homeowner education. Holmes County Board of Supervisors also partnered with the CSLC Affordable Housing Program, adding $120,000 to this project.
"Our goal at CSLC is to give back to our community in every way possible," said Mrs. Greer. "It is far better to give than to receive, and every person deserves to live in a safe and adequate home. Many of the applicants live in dilapidated conditions, and the repairs are far past anything they could afford on their own. By giving them a hand-up, they can comfortably stay in their homes."
Mrs. Greer said CSLC receives hundreds of phone calls from people in need of home rehabilitation services. She said that the demand is so high that CSLC could not ignore the problem. She approached local bankers for financial assistance, and was referred to Mark Ouellette at BankPlus in Jackson, Mississippi.
"Mark was apparently the man to talk to about this kind of program," said Mrs. Greer. "I was told he was familiar with this type of project, and may have some funding sources available. We went directly to Jackson and talked to Mark personally to see if we were a good fit for the Affordable Housing Program."
Mr. Ouellette, first vice president at BankPlus, frequently utilizes FHLB Dallas's AHP for projects similar to CSLC's housing program. AHP is available to FHLB Dallas member institutions, such as BankPlus, to provide financing for the purchase, construction, or rehabilitation of single-family, rental, transitional, and multifamily housing projects for very low- to moderate-income individuals and families.
"People may not realize that BankPlus was founded in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, and we recognize that adequate housing is one of the major concerns facing that region," said Mr. Ouellette. "Naturally, we were very excited to be presented with a viable project that will address this need. Mr. and Mrs. Greer were aggressive in seeking solutions for their community and fortunately their persistence paid off. We look forward to working closely with CSLC and helping these Delta families."
CSLC is one of 53 projects across FHLB Dallas's five-state District of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Texas that received a portion of the $11 million FHLB Dallas awarded in AHP funding in 2011. Thirteen projects in Mississippi received a total of more than $3 million in AHP grants, which will assist in the creation or rehabilitation of 378 housing units within the state. BankPlus facilitated three AHP grants in 2011.
About BankPlus
BankPlus, with total assets of more than $2.2 billion, has over 60 banking offices in 33 Mississippi communities. In addition to its Belzoni Main Office, other BankPlus offices are located in Bentonia, Brandon, Byram, Canton, Clinton, D'Iberville, Durant, Flora, Flowood, Gluckstadt, Hernando, Holly Bluff, Horn Lake, Isola, Jackson, Lexington, Madison, Meridian, Newton, Olive Branch, Pearl, Picayune, Pickens, Poplarville, Quitman, Ridgeland, Shubuta, Southaven, Stonewall, Tchula, Waynesboro and Yazoo City. For additional information on BankPlus, please visit BankPlus.net.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 12 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $31.4 billion as of June 30, 2011, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to more than 900 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Texas. For more information, visit the FHLB Dallas website at fhlb.com.
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