"Our talented and competent consultant, Mark Brunner guides WPDC in how to run a proficient and professional CDC with his 25 +years of community development knowledge."
Through the generous support of a $35,000 grant awarded by the Robert H. Reakirt Foundation, PNC Bank Trustee, the CDC Association is piloting with Spring Grove Village/ the Winton Place Development Corporation (WPDC), a New Model project to rehab foreclosed and abandoned homes for new homeowers, and bring their business district back to life.
Most community development corporations (CDCs) in the Greater Cincinnati region (Northern Kentucky to Middletown, Oh) have big plans for their neighborhoods. Unfortunately, only a few of those more than 65 organizations have an on-going operating funding and the staffing to re-build their communities. Clearly, a new way of supporting CDCs needs to be found, so that all neighborhoods can create the vibrant housing and business districts they envision for their communityÕs futures.
Pictured here is the newly formed Property Committee in May of 2008. Left to right: Trish Muse, Jamie Beauchamp, Carl Servizzi, Dave Wesemberg, and Mark
Brunner as facilitator. 
The business district is rife with opportunities. To the left are two empty stores on the corner of E. Epworth and N. Edgewood. On the right is the Shoemaker Commons, a police substation and neighborhood meeting place.
Their are many houses that with work could be assets to the neighborhood. These are a few WPDC potential projects.
Representatives from Spring Grove Community Council and Winton Place Development Corporation collaborate on plans
for the revitalization of the business district.
A problem foreclosure on an otherwise well-kept street.
Part of Mark's work is to help WPDC become more efficient. Here the property committee meets to prepare scope of work to renovate this home. Mark is guiding them to collaborate
WPDC has rehabbed about one house per year in its 20 year history as a volunteer organization. In 2008, they will rehab and sell to new homeowners three to five homes, and prepare to rehab five to seven in 2009. They are also working on revitalizing their beautiful small business district, with a grant they are writing to the City of Cincinnati. And they have already raised a loan pool of more than $60,000 from neighborhood alumni Ð generous folk who are former residents. Two more generous funders are providing dollars to purchase foreclosures as they go through sheriffÕs sale, to prevent investors from gaining a toehold in the community.
Clearly, Spring Grove Village/WPDC are far more successful already this year than they have been previously, thus demonstrating that the capacity for change and growth was already there, and needed only a moderate amount of support to spring to life.
The CDCA is managing the contract, handling the funding, and providing the needed reports, so that consultant Mark Brunner can focus on his work, in increasing the communityÕs capacity to re-invent itself, with the decision making in the hands of the neighborhood.
Our hope, with this pilot project, is to demonstrate the abilities of CDCs to revitalize homes, streets and the entire community, without requiring a separate executive director and staffing for each one. Through this model, the CDC Association could provide the backroom services (accounting, human resources, websites, administration, project management, etc.) to a number of organizations at a much reduced cost.
Thanks so much, Robert H Reakirt Foundation, PNC Bank Trustee for having faith in our CDCs!
Second Phase New Model Project 2009
In the photo above, Simon Sotelo delivered the check for the second phase of the New Model Project, sponsored by Josephine Schell Russell Charitable Trust, PNC Bank, Trustee.