Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Learn to coordinate Family Group Conferences in April

Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative is offering a three-day Family Group Conferencing coordination training in mid-April.   Participants will:
  • Learn the steps in coordinating an FGC
  • Understand how to prepare family members and professionals to participate in a meeting
  • The importance of planning for safety concerns prior to a meeting
  • Practice skills through coached role plays and a mock FGC

Details, including cost and how to register, are in the flier, below.
FGCCoordinationTraining0410

Georgia Avenue Task Force stakeholder survey

If you live, work, socialize or are in any way a stakeholder in Georgia Avenue, please take the Georgia Avenue Community Survey, now online in English and Spanish.

The survey will provide valuable feedback for the Georgia Avenue Community Development Task Force.   The results will feed into a Neighborhood Development Plan which the Task Force will begin working on in June.

As always, the more perspectives the better.   Residents, civic association, businesses, and others are being asked to share widely to your community groups, neighbors, church groups, and electronic discussion lists.   And Task Force members will be taking the survey door-to-door in a few weeks.

Sunday, March 28, 2010

DC Tenant Rights & Foreclosure Prevention Workshop

Strengthening Ward One Together presents this April 9 workshop, "DC Tenant Rights & Foreclosure Prevention."   The event features a presentation by Natalie LeBeau, Tenant Anti-Displacement Program Director at Housing Counseling Services who will explain tenant rights in DC and much more.   Details are in the flier, below.
SWOTApril 9th Meeting Flyer -3-25

City Council hearings on workforce, tenant, and rent issues

Some of the public hearings noticed in the March 26 DC Register about which SWOT members may be interested are:

Monday, March 22, 2010

Parent classes at Shaw/Garnett Patterson starting March 25

School’s not just for kids. . .

Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative's latest parenting class starts March 25 and all DCPS parents are welcome!   Details in the flier below.

Shawgpparent Classes

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Volunteers needed for tree planting extravaganza!

Columbia Heights Village Together with Casey Trees Washington, DC is sponsoring a Neighborhood Tree Planting on March 20 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.

Casey Trees is providing the trees, tools, gloves and technical advisors.   CHVT is recruiting the volunteers (dressed in gardening clothes and ready to get dirty) to plant 30 trees on the grounds of the Columbia Heights Village Apartments.   Adults and kids are welcome -- and about 40 are needed for this ambitious greening project.   Volunteers will be fed and watered just like the trees!   Bagels and coffee at the beginning and pizza at the end.   The check-in/organizational site is the southeast corner of 14th Street and Columbia Road.   Harvard Street may be blocked off due to a marathon that is being run that same morning, so you might want to take the metro (Green or Yellow Line, Columbia Heights stop).   The planting will happen regardless of weather.

For more information, including how to register, click here.

Rent control proection for the elderly and persons with disabilities, April 1

Straight from the DC Tenants Coalition Yahoo Group:
The District of Columbia Office of the Tenant Advocate is co-sponsoring with IONA Senior Services a workshop on "Rent Control Protection for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities" on Thursday, April 1.   The workshop will be held from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm at IONA Senior Services, 4125 Albemarle Street, NW.

The Rental Housing Act of 1985 (Act), as amended, includes provisions covering the amounts and frequency of rent increases for units subject to rent control in the District of Columbia.  Rent increases are based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI-W) plus 2%, with maximum amount of the rent increase capped at 10%.   However, rent increases for the elderly (62 years of age or older) and persons with disabilities are equal to the CPI-W or 5%, whichever is lower.

Many eligible renters in the District of Columbia are not aware of this valuable protection.  The Office of the Tenant Advocate is embarking on an educational campaign to educate elderly and disabled renters on how to take advantage of this protection.  During 2010, the Office of the Tenant Advocate will hold workshops in various locations throughout the city.  In addition, the Office of the Tenant Advocate will visit apartment buildings and complexes with substantial numbers of elderly and disabled renters and assist these renters with completing the application on-site.

Participants attending the April 1 workshop can complete the application on-site and the Office of the Tenant Advocate will submit the completed applications to the Department of Housing and Community Development, Housing Regulation Administration.   Participants need to bring appropriate documentation to the workshop.  There is no processing fee and the protection is provided without regard to income.  We are finalizing plans for a workshop to be held in Ward 4.

Seating is limited.  Tenants can reserve space by calling the Office of the Tenant Advocate at 202-719-6560, faxing their request to 202-719-6585 or sending an email to delores (dot) anderson (at) dc (dot) gov.  You are cordially invited to attend if you work with the elderly or persons with disabilities and want to know more about this protection.  If you have any questions prior to the workshop you may contact the Office of the Tenant Advocate.

The nearest Metro station is the Tenleytown Metro Station on the red line.  The number 32 bus services the area.  For additional Metro information call 202-637-7000 or visit http://www.wmata.com/.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Walk-in schedule for Office of Tenant Advocate

Effective March 1, the Office of the Tenant Advocate’s walk-in schedule will be from 8:45 am to 3:30 pm Monday through Thursday.   OTA is located at 1250 U Street, NW on the 4th floor.   For more information, go to the Office of Tenant Advocate's website.

Blog format improved!

Recent improvements to the blog include adding a Meeting Notes and Notices page and changes to the way we are highlighting meetings, etc.

Mentoring Works2 March calendar now available

Interested in working with Mentoring Works2?   Then check out their March 2010 calendar.