Pictured: Builders of Hope CEO James Armstrong on site in West Dallas.
Revitalize West Dallas
Affordable housing is coming to West Dallas! During their April 8th meeting, the Dallas City Council approved Builders of Hope Community Development Corporation’s $3.8M affordable housing project aimed for families that fall between 60-80% of the area median income. The project, known as “Revitalize West Dallas” is one of 16 projects submitted in response to a City of Dallas’ housing department notice of funding available for affordable housing issued July of 2019. Builders of Hope’s project received the highest scoring and will include over $1.1M in federal HOME funds with the lion’s share of dollars going to homebuyers for down payment assistance.
“Building hope for us means breaking the cycles of poverty by building strong communities and creating generational wealth through homeownership.”
-James Armstrong III
President/CEO, Builders of Hope
Over the past five year the West Dallas community has seen a wave of market-rate multi-family units, new developments like Sylvan 30 and Trinity Groves, and a steady rise in land sales which all have attributed to real estate values doubling, and in some cases tripling, year over year. This fast-paced gentrification has left many long-time residents struggling to pay their property taxes and have forced some to relocate to less expensive parts of the city. James Armstrong III, Builders of Hope’s chief executive hopes that this project will help alleviate the negative effects of gentrification and provide economic mobility for families that need it most. “We are more than home builders, we are hope builders”, said Armstrong on Wednesday after the council vote. “Building hope for us means breaking the cycles of poverty by building strong communities and creating generational wealth through homeownership.”
The project calls for twenty 1,500 sq. ft. affordable homes between 3-4 bedrooms that are priced for mortgages below $1,300. Armstrong said the project is designed not only for families to become homeowners but to have instant equity which equates to wealth. Armstrong has been at the helm of Builders of Hope for a little over 2 years and has made lasting strides to right an organization that once was on the brinks of failure. He attributes his success to great partners and mentors. “There is no way our mission could still have life if it wasn’t for great partners like Wells Fargo, Benchmark Bank and mentors like John Hawkins of Hawkins-Welwood. Our board has also been a constant source of strength and support, especially when hard decisions had to be made.”
“This is a big victory for West Dallas and a great partner that’s been in our community for over 20 years.”
-Councilman Omar Narvaez, District 6
Builders of Hope CDC is now re-certified CHDO (Community Housing Development Organization), a special designation given to an organization dedicated to using federal dollars to build affordable housing and is currently building in the East Dallas neighborhood of Buckner Terrace and South Dallas. The organization plans to build its capacity to over 50 homes a year, and to extend its portfolio beyond single-family units and develop projects with greater density.
Builders of Hope CDC was founded in 1998 and grew into one of the premier community development organizations in North Texas under the leadership of founding President/CEO Norman Henry. Over the past 20 years, Builders of Hope has transformed Dallas’ urban neighborhoods through building strong communities, over 500 homes and creating more than $45M of wealth for families.
For questions and further details, please reach Sophia Goines at info@bohcdc.com.
Before and after: a BOH home build in East Dallas.
