Transformation on Owasco Avenue

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In April 2005, the Chicago Daily Herald featured an article about Habitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley’s plans to build new homes for low-income families in Elgin, Illinois.¹ The Block Build Project called for five single-family homes on Owasco Avenue, a tree-lined street gently sloping down to the Fox River. The first family moved into its newly purchased home by Christmas of that year, and by August 2006, the project was complete. Each home, sited on a fifth of an acre wooded lot, features a front porch, a backyard, and a garage located unobtrusively at the rear.

The Block Build Project received the HUD Secretary’s Award for Excellence, one of the Best in American Living Awards presented at the National Association of Home Builders’ Show in February 2007. Two other recipients of the award were the Delaware Street Project in Indianapolis, Indiana and the Vale Housing Revitalization Project in Schenectady, New York. The annual award competition recognizes superior design created through cooperative public-private efforts that expand homeownership opportunities for underserved American families.

A Far-Reaching Collaboration

The five Owasco Avenue houses resemble the traditional bungalow-style homes commonly found in Elgin neighborhoods.

Owasco Avenue’s new look is the result of a far- reaching collaboration orchestrated by the Northern Fox Valley chapter of Habitat for Humanity. The land was bought with grants from local businesses and community-based organizations. Local college students developed the architectural designs, and an engineering firm donated $30,000 in services to design a sewer extension. Each home had an organizational sponsor who paid for the construction materials. Volunteers (and the homebuyers, through sweat equity) provided the labor for four of the homes. Many volunteers came from churches; others were participating in employer-sponsored Build Days. A fifth home was built by a national homebuilder who donated the labor as well as the materials. A local electricians union donated the electrical work on two of the homes.

In addition to coordinating all of these community interests and efforts, the Northern Fox Valley chapter of Habitat selected and assisted the families who would become the new homeowners, directed the construction, serviced the mortgages, and made sure that sufficient construction funds were raised. Broad community interest was evident in the popular response to fundraising events, such as a black-tie Dream Builder’s Soiree.

Design Objectives

Architectural students at nearby Judson College designed the homes. A faculty director of the project, David Amundson, reported that the students sought to integrate the historical tradition of residential architecture in Elgin — in particular, Sears Craftsman bungalow-style homes — with features of modern homes. Each three-bedroom home has a unique appearance and exterior, and averages approximately 1,400 to 1,500 square feet. The floorplan provides a clear sightline from the kitchen into both the backyard and the street in front, allowing parents to monitor children playing outside. One bedroom is on the first floor next to a full bath; laundry facilities are on the second floor. One of the homes is designed to meet special accessibility needs.

The student designers kept the architectural elements simple and volunteer friendly; for example, altering the pitch of the roof to make it safer to stand and walk on, and incorporating readily available, easily worked construction materials. At the same time, the designers chose durable, economical materials, such as vinyl siding and flooring, asphalt shingles, and laminate countertops.

Security for Homebuyers and an Asset for the Community

The new owners of these homes had to demonstrate need, such as being rent-burdened or living in overcrowded or unsafe conditions. They also had to agree to contribute up to 500 hours of sweat equity and be able to make the mortgage payments on a purchase price of $130,000 to $140,000. These families had incomes at 30 to 60 percent of the area’s median income. In keeping with the Habitat for Humanity mission, the homes were financed with no-interest loans, and mortgage payments amount to no more than 30 percent of a buyer’s annual income. These new homeowners also moved into their homes with the benefit of homeownership mentoring and strong personal ties to neighbors, having built their homes together.

The Block Build Project has addressed the housing needs of families and given a boost to the appearance and value of homes in the neighborhood, in keeping with city and county plans that call for high-quality housing choices for all income levels. To further the cause, the mortgage payments for these homes will be pooled and reinvested in the construction of additional affordable homes in the area.

To obtain additional information about the Block Build Project, contact Barbara Beckman, Executive Director of the Habitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley, at 847.836.1432. Information about the HUD Secretary’s Award program is available at www.huduser.org/research/secaward.html.

1. Gerard Dziuba, "Seven Houses in a Year Is, Well, Some Sweat for Habitat Chapter." Chicago Daily Herald, 8 April 2005, p. F2.