Partners for Better Communities (Virginia DHCD's Podcast)

Latest Episodes:

14. Orton Family Foundation's Sara Lightner ⇒ Shaping Community Heart & Soul May 13, 2020

Show notes

Community Heart & Soul is a community engagement process at work in towns across the country. Created by the Orton Family Foundation as a way to help communities involve everyone, invest in what matters most to residents, and plan for the future, the process is being explored by several Virginia communities.

In this conversation, Orton Family Foundation Director of Training Sara Lightner gives a background of the program and highlights how it's been used over the past decade. "Really listening, and trying to ensure that everyone is part of the conversation helps to weave everyone together so that the long game is part of it," says Lightner. "We're not just here for the right now, but we're here to make sure the decisions we make now take into account impacts years to come."

In Virginia, the communities of Bowling Green, Orange, and the Alleghany Highlands are all exploring the Community Heart & Soul model.

Get more information on Community Heart & Soul here.

13. Community Housing Partners' Samantha Livesay ⇒ A homeownership strategy in the NRV May 11, 2020

Show notes

In a conversation from the November 2019 Virginia Governor's Housing Conference, DHCD's Kyerra Carr talks with Community Housing Partners' Samantha Livesay about strategies to support homeownership in the New River Valley. In partnership with institutional partners and localities, the organization is working to intervene in an area with increasing housing costs. "We want to live out our mission by creating homes and communities that are healthy, affordable and sustainable," says Livesay. "Homebuyer education is an important part of that."

Get more information from Community Housing Partners (CHP)
Learn about CHP Homeownership
Get ready for the 2020 Virginia Governor's Housing Conference

12. Todd Wolford ⇒ Business support during COVID-19 & Wytheville's lessons from the polio past May 08, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, Downtown Wytheville, Inc. Executive Director Todd Wolford discusses business support though the pandemic, sharing lessons learned during the course of the Southwest Virginia community's recent downtown renaissance. "We've become a hub of information," says Wolford, "so a lot of people were looking at our organization saying 'What are you going to do?' It's a lot of pressure."

What this Virginia Main Street community is doing: helping businesses navigate uncertain terrain and access financial resources, including a new micro loan program.

Tough circumstances are not new for this downtown district. Seventy years ago, polio struck the community with one of the largest outbreaks per capita in the country. During the "summer without children," the summer destination closed businesses and sent visitors away. More recently Downtown Wytheville, Inc. helped district businesses navigate the challenges of a streetscape improvement process that limited access to downtown businesses.

Get resources for COVID-19 business support in your community at the following locations:

11. Q&A with Rachel Jordan ⇒ Using CDBG in response to COVID-19 May 06, 2020

Show notes

As the Policy and Strategic Development staff in Community Development roll out guidance for using Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to address COVID-19, they're answering lots of questions. Learn from their conversations with more than 70 Virginia communities and get the latest guidance from Policy Analyst Rachel Jordan.

CDBG COVID-19 Landing Page: Click here
CDBG COVID-19 Fact Sheet: Click here
CDBG COVID-19 Response: Click here
CDBG COVID-19 Webinar Recording: Click here
CDBG COVID-19 Podcast Recording with Matt Weaver: Click here
CDBG COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): Click here
DHCD COVID-19 Landing Page: Click here

10. Mahalia Dryden-Mason ⇒ Fair Housing for All Apr 23, 2020

Show notes

Mahalia Dryden-Mason is an advocate and resource for fair, safe, affordable housing for all Virginians. In this conversation with DHCD's Kyerra Carr at the 2019 Virginia Governor's Housing Conference, Dryden-Mason talks about what drives her work through the Virginia Fair Housing Office at the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Relations (DPOR). "At the end of the day," she says, "I have to see some results."

Get more information on fair housing at:

Save the date for the 2020 Virginia Governor's Housing Conference: November 18-20 in Roanoke.

9. Arlington Chief Building Official Shahriar Amiri ⇒ Creating a Virtual Building Department Apr 21, 2020

Show notes

Arlington County quickly responded to the challenge of providing building services during the closures of public spaces during COVID-19. "We thought at first it was a monumental task, but found that it wasn't that difficult," says Chief Building Official and Inspection Services Director Shariar Amiri. Having moved the review and inspection process to online and virtual delivery, Amiri says, "If I had known, we would have done this three years ago."

In this interview with DHCD Rajan Engh, Amiri shares the goals, the path, and the rewards of moving to a 100% online and virtual system to keep processes moving.

Rajan Engh is a training and development specialist and the learning center administrator of the Jack A. Proctor Virginia Building Code Academy.

8. Matt Weaver on COVID-19 ⇒ Addressing urgent need with community development block grants Apr 13, 2020

Show notes

How can community development block grant resources address the urgent needs of a COVID-19 Virginia?

Matt Weaver, associate director of Community Development's Policy and Strategic Development Office, walks us through the program and some strategies emerging across Virginia's communities.

Get an overview of CDBG urgent need resources at https://www.dhcd.virginia.gov/using-cdbg-resources-response-covid-19
Track all of DHCD resources and updates at https://www.dhcd.virginia.gov/covid-19

7. Rebecca Rowe ⇒ Community Revitalization Strategies and COVID-19 Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

DHCD Associate Director of Community Development oversees the Community Revitalization Office (CRO). The CRO team is converting its technical assistance and resources to serve Virginia business districts remotely. Working with the Virginia Main Street program, local leaders have access to webinars and ongoing grant programs. Designated Main Street communities can currently apply for quick-response grants. And across the Main Street Network, both designated and affiliated communities share best practices and resources.

"We are in a really challenging moment for small communities and small businesses, and it's also a spotlight moment for small businesses nationally," says Rowe. "There's a recognition of how important they are."

Connect with CRO staff about your needs or sign up for an upcoming training.

The next scheduled training will be Upper Story Housing (Understanding the Field) on April 22 at 11 a.m. and Upper Story Housing (Exploring the Opportunities) on April 29 at 11 a.m.

6. Nichele Carver on COVID-19 ⇒ Fast action to shelter the homeless Apr 07, 2020

Show notes

"I've never seen anything like the speed with which we moved to get money into communities," says Nichele Carver, DHCD's associate director of homeless and special needs housing.

These are extraordinary circumstances, in which those in need of shelter are faced with life-threatening conditions. Hear about the quick-action strategies that a range of state agencies, partners and communities took to be as responsive as possible, as quickly as possible.

Get more information at www.dhcd.virginia.org/covid-19.

Read about the April 3 announcement on emergency funding at Governor Northam's website.

5. Amanda Love ⇒ DHCD's COVID-19 Response Mar 30, 2020

Show notes

Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development Public Relations Director Amanda Love catches us up on the agency's response and coordination of resources to help community partners navigate new terrain under COVID-19 precautions. Together we'll keep the commonwealth as healthy and strong as possible and work to mitigate health and economic impacts.

Find DHCD COVID-19 resources and updates at www.dhcd.virginia.gov/COVID-19.

Visit the Commonwealth's COVID-19 resource page at https://www.virginia.gov/coronavirus-updates/.