[Best Of] Colin Flaherty: Rockford Public Housing - Neighbors Protest
Public Housing Section 8 High Crime - Colin Flaherty reviews and give commentary on new with headlines "Rockford Activist Attacked Outside Home" and "Construction begins in July on controversial South New Towne project"
[link and excerpt below]
http://www.mystateline.com/news/rockford-activist-attacked-outside-home/781777035
By: Gregory Cormier
Posted: Aug 02, 2017 11:23 PM CDT
Updated: Aug 04, 2017 03:24 PM CDT
ROCKFORD - "They started trash talking and the next thing I know they are off their bikes and they're taunting me and threatening to kick me," said long time Rockford resident Terry Siebert.
Siebert was attacked in his own driveway Sunday afternoon as he was about to take out his garbage. "I got a couple of punches that I got on my face," he added.
Siebert was approached by three teenagers just outside his home on Carol Court, where he says they began to threaten him, then started physically punching him. A neighbor drove up shortly after and broke up the fight.
"If it wasn't for my neighbor Austin they probably would have done more damage. When Austin pulled up it sort of broke up the situation," he said.
Siebert is familiar to many because for the past two years he became the face of the fight against the South New Towne housing project going in just down the street. He often set up a table in his front yard gathering signatures in protest.
"We have seen this juvenile crime in our neighborhood and crime in general in the last eight to ten years, it's increased more and more and more," Siebert said. "We blame it all, very frankly, on the Rockford Housing Authority and their Section 8 program," he said. "This area is full of Section 8 apartments all around here, homes, and we see more and more and more trouble around here all the time," he added.
http://www.wifr.com/content/news/Construction-begins-in-July-on-controversial-South-New-Towne-project-385116951.html
By Briana Collins | Posted: Thu 7:04 PM, Jun 30, 2016 | Updated: Thu 10:38 PM, Jun 30, 2016
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) – Michael O’Donnell and his wife have lived near South New Towne Drive for 17 years. They never thought of moving until now.
“Low income housing is going to bring in all the riff raff,” says O’Donnell. “Everybody has to have a place to live but you don’t take low income housing and bring them into a neighborhood like this.”
Gorman and Company and the Rockford Housing Authority are moving forward with the South New Towne Drive housing development despite neighborhood opposition. O’Donnell says many of his neighbors are moving out.
Construction is expected to begin in the coming weeks and people could be moving into the 49 new homes next year. Gorman’s Andre Blakely explains the company’s goal.
“We remain focused on the transformation of public housing in the city of Rockford and committed to our partnership with RHA and doing so and that remains our single focus.”
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