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Mission Priorities Dena Wittman, Back Bay Mission's Associate for Community Empowerment, is charged with moving the community development and advocacy commitments of the Mission forward. Current priorities of the Mission's community development work are the issues of homelessness and affordable housing. Homelessness has been newly addressed by creating a permanent housing and outreach program at Back Bay Mission, and by working with other community stakeholders to develop the Open Doors Homeless Coalition of South Mississippi. This coalition is responsible for bringing in approximately $1.8 million in new funding to deal with the homeless issue. Affordable housing following Katrina has emerged at the top of the list of community concerns. With most of the affordable housing stock destroyed or severely damaged, there is a severe shortage of housing. Back Bay Mission's volunteers along with thousands of others from across the country are feverishly working to restore property that is salvageable. The Mission has doubled its efforts to help move families back into the safety and comfort of their homes. Affordable Housing Initiative For over thirty years, Back Bay Mission has worked to maintain the affordable housing stock along the Mississippi Gulf Coast through its low-income housing rehabilitation program. In the wake of Katrina’s destruction, the Mission is positioning itself to go one step further by establishing a new affordable housing initiative. This is a natural outgrowth of our long-time commitment to affordable housing and safe, dignified communities along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The devastation of Hurricane Katrina to the housing stock in our region is enormous. Estimates are that approximately 65,000 homes were completely destroyed while another approximately 64,000 homes were extensively damaged. Many of our poorer neighborhoods, where individuals have the least capacity to recover, were hit extremely hard. As a result, city officials, social service providers and many others have all raised the need to provide new affordable housing options along the Coast, but few have begun to collaboratively and deliberately plan to meet that need. Although Back Bay Mission understands it cannot meet the enormous needs for affordable housing by itself, it stands ready to play an important role in new development and in community planning. Everett Lewis, who has more than 20 years in the banking and housing industries in the Coastal area, is the Mission’s affordable housing specialist. Back Bay Mission’s affordable housing initiative is projected to unfold in three distinct phases:
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1012 Division Street • Biloxi, MS 39530 • Phone: (228)432-0301 • Fax: (228)374-2922