A client driving social change for generations to come

It’s a warm, partly cloudy day in January. We are in New Orleans for the week to attend a press conference for the launch of People’s Housing Plus (PH+), a new community development organization with a focus on affordable housing.

Oji Alexander, the CEO of PH+, is driving us around the city, showing off his organization’s latest affordable housing models. “We build new construction for a reason: we live in the Gulf South,” Oji says. “We know we’ve got to elevate for flood protection, and we know we have to build energy efficiency and storm mitigation into houses.”

Oji is a bundle of nervous joy as he explains the work that he and others do. There is still much to be done before the press conference tomorrow, but excitement is in the air. A more centralized, impactful organization is coming.

PH+ is being created through a strategic merger of three New Orleans-based community development organizations: Crescent City Community Land Trust, Home By Hand, and Tulane Canal Neighborhood Development Corporation. 

With more than 40 years combined experience among the merging partners, PH+ will be a one-stop affordable home shop, providing marginalized communities with an affordable pathway to housing, stewardship and multi-generational wealth.

Oji led Home By Hand prior to the merger. He’s no stranger to the need. “One of the most gratifying parts of our work is when that person comes in and says, ‘I never thought I’d be able to own a home.’ Then, 6 months down the road, you’re handing them the keys.”

As we pass a golf course on the right, Oji points and shares a bit of local history. “We’re in Pontchartrain Park right now,and we’ll be driving into a neighborhood called Gentilly Woods,” Oji says. “These were segregated neighborhoods. Pontchartrain Park was the black neighborhood; Gentilly Woods was the white neighborhood.” 

Decades of discrimination and segregation, coupled with the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and a growing lack of affordability in the city, have shaped poor economic conditions for black families of New  Orleans. 

The average sales price of New Orleans homes is close to $300,000, which is more than double what a family of four making 80% of the Area Median Income can afford. While the Area Median Income for a family of four in New Orleans is $56,300, the median household income of African American families is only $25,806.

Organizations like PH+ need a strong brand identity and dedicated leadership to build credibility not only among their funders, but also among members of the community. Credibility and resources are critical to their success. It helps that President of the Board for PH+, Nia Davis, is a success story of the organization, having been through the Home By Hand program to become a thriving homeowner. Oji also lives in a home built by the organization.

“I live in what we’re selling. I’m not trying to sell anything to anybody that I haven’t tested,” Oji says. “And it’s the same thing with the knowledge. I’m not selling a statistic. I’m selling the experience, first hand, that it is possible.”

CARTEL Strategies on DesignRush