Funding included as part of H.R. 2617, Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023
FORT WORTH, Texas (Jan. 24, 2023) – Fort Worth Housing Solutions will receive $4 million in funding for Hughes House Public infrastructure improvements, as included in H.R. 2617, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.
“We are so thankful for this funding, which will lead to much-needed improvements for streets and public utilities that have been lacking for decades,” Fort Worth Housing Solutions President Mary-Margaret Lemons said. “The Choice Neighborhood transformation that is happening in historic Stop Six will bring lasting change to our community and new opportunities for our residents.”
Hughes House, which will reside in District 5 and is a phase of the Stop Six Choice Neighborhood Initiative, is a mixed-use development that will feature 162 apartments with a variety of floor plans. The development will rise at the corner of East Rosedale Street and Amanda Avenue, and will include about 7,000 square feet of ground-level commercial space ideal for neighborhood businesses.
Hughes House takes its name from famed Dunbar High School Coach Robert Hughes Sr., the winningest boys’ basketball coach in history.
“Coach Hughes’ ability to inspire and motivate young men has been recognized on a global scale,” said Mayor Pro Tem Gyna Bivens, who serves District 5. “The accolades recognizing his contributions have their place in all forms of media, but an apartment complex named in his honor ensures thousands and thousands will see that name for decades to come and associate it with one word: Excellence.”
Representative Marc Veasey voted to pass the historic Fiscal Year 2023 government funding legislation that delivers historic investments in American families and workers – while strengthening Democracy at home and abroad. The legislation includes $30,478,385 in Community Project Funding that Veasey secured to directly respond to the pressing needs of North Texas.
“I am proud to vote for a bipartisan government bill that delivers for our nation’s families and includes $30 million in key funding that I secured to address long overdue community needs for North Texas,” said Rep. Veasey. “The investments will make a real difference in North Texas that will foster economic development, improve our infrastructure, bolster access to health care, and so much more. I am proud to have fought for funding that will make better communities across North Texas.”
Rep. Veasey championed funding for 15 projects that will directly benefit North Texas residents. These include:
$2,250,000 for the Center for Transforming Lives’ Riverside Early Childhood Education Economic Mobility Center
$2,400,000 for the City of Arlington – Neighborhood Wi-Fi
$1,000,000 for the City of Dallas – Hensley Field Shoreline Modification
$750,000 for the City of Irving – Southwest Park Renovation Project
$500,000 for the Dallas College, Dallas, TX for a teaching residency apprenticeship program
$2,000,000 for the DART Fuel System Modernization Project
$1,000,000 for the Emergency Department Renovation and Expansion Request for Medical Equipment
$4,000,000 for the Hughes House Public Infrastructure Improvements
$7,750,000 for the Southern Gateway Park
$1,439,695 for the Texas Wesleyan University, Fort Worth, TX for STEM education programs, including lab equipment
$4,000,000 for the Transform 1012 N. Main Street professional services and expenses for the design phase, Fort Worth, Texas, Tarrant County
$750,000 for the United Way of Tarrant County – Mission United
$750,000 for the United Way of Tarrant County Workforce Development
$400,000 for the United Way of Tarrant County-Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA).
$1,488,690 for the William M. McDonald YMCA Covered Outdoor Gymnasium Space
The twelve-bill government funding package will create good-paying American jobs, grow opportunities for the middle class and small businesses, and provide a lifeline for working families. Taken together, the funding for Texas’s 33rd District and the funding increases for critical government programs will continue to reverse decades of disinvestment in our communities.
About Fort Worth Housing Solutions
Fort Worth Housing Solutions is the premier provider of affordable housing in the City of Fort Worth. The agency’s portfolio includes 380 mixed-income properties across the city with 89 percent of its 6,800 units offered at various levels of affordability to income-eligible residents. The agency also manages federal Housing Choice Vouchers and other rental assistance programs that help about 6,400 families and individuals cover housing costs each year. In all, FWHS ensures that more than 33,000 people have a safe, affordable place to call home each day. Learn more at www.fwhs.org.
About the Stop Six Choice Neighborhood Initiative
The Stop Six Choice Neighborhood Initiative is a multi-year effort developed by residents, community leaders and stakeholders to transform a historic community in Southeast Fort Worth into a vibrant, safe and sustainable community with access to quality education, healthcare, services and amenities – a “neighborhood of choice.” The effort is guided by a 2019 Transformation Plan that calls for six phases of new, mixed-income housing, commercial space, neighborhood improvements and multi-purpose community hub and aquatics center. The U.S. Housing and Urban Development seeded the transformation with a $35 grant Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant awarded to Fort Worth Housing Solutions and the City of Fort Worth in 2020. In all, the initial HUD grant is expected to trigger more than $345 million in investment and improvements for the Stop Six community.
