LRCD | Latest News - Lakes Region Community Developers

Latest News - June

6/18/2018

Playground Fundraising Update

There are 15 days left to donate to our crowdfunding campaign to build a playground at our Lochmere Meadows development in Tilton! Lochmere Meadows provides healthy housing for 47 working families at a price they can afford. We need your help to give these busy families a safe place to play outside. Click here to make a donation.

Thank you to EPTAM Plastics, Lakes Region Community Services, the Annette P. Schmitt Foundation, the Greater Lakes Region Children’s Auction, and KaBOOM! for their support of this project!

NeighborWorks America Turns 40!

Did you know that Lakes Region Community Developers is a member of the NeighborWorks America network? NeighborWorks is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit leader in affordable housing and community development. For 40 years, it has worked to create opportunities for people to live in affordable homes; improve their lives; and strengthen their communities. NeighborWorks accomplishes this mission through a network of nearly 250 nonprofit organizations in all 50 states, D.C., and Puerto Rico. We are one of those 250 members.

Lakes Region Community Developers joined the NeighborWorks network in 2000. For the past 18 years, NeighborWorks has supported us in the following ways:

Reviews our organizational and financial health every year, and every three years they conduct an in-depth on-site assessment. We are rated as an Exemplary NeighborWorks organization, which is their highest rating. This assures our supporters that we are being responsible stewards of their investment in us.
Provides funding for operations that we use to leverage other resources. They also provide funding to help us pay for pre-development activities that are critical to the success of our real estate development projects.
Provides training, technical assistance, and peer-to-peer networking opportunities so we can learn from national experts and from other members of the network about the latest trends and best practices. This ensures that our funders get the most bang for their buck and that our residents are best served.

We are extremely proud to be part of such a powerful network of outstanding housing and community development organizations all over the country. Please join us in congratulating NeighborWorks on 40 years of advancing opportunity! We look forward to another 40 years of working together to make every community a place of opportunity.

Block Party for NeighborWorks Week

We continued our 25th anniversary celebration with a block party on June 9th as part of NeighborWorks Week.

Each June, NeighborWorks America and its network of local organizations, like LRCD, mobilize tens of thousands of volunteers, business people, neighbors, friends, and local and national elected and civic leaders in a week of neighborhood change and awareness.

At the block party LRCD residents enjoyed music, games, and burgers and hot dogs grilled by our Finance Director, Stuart, Board Treasurer Geoff, and Board Chair, Jason.

A big thank you to Navigating Recovery, Laconia Police Department, Belknap County Conservation District, Belknap-Merrimack Head Start, Lakes Region Partnership for Public Health, Stand Up Laconia, Lakes Region Child Care Services, Healthy Families America, and Family Resource Center of the Lakes Region for being part of the celebration!

Last Chance to RSVP for Ribbon Cutting

If you haven't already, make sure to RSVP to the ribbon cutting for Gilford Village Knolls III (GVK III) on June 26th from 11:30am to 1:00pm. Click the button below to RSVP.

For questions regarding GVK III’s waiting list please contact Julia Moore at Stewart Property Management at 603.524.6673 or via email at [email protected]

Click Here to RSVP

Celebrate Healthy Homes Month

Did you know June is National Healthy Homes Month? Here at Lakes Region Community Developers, this is something to celebrate because building affordable healthy homes is central to our mission.

Healthy homes are safe, energy-efficient, and provide good indoor air quality (no mold, dust, or other contaminants and they have good ventilation). We care about healthy homes because they are the foundation of a healthy community.

Kids who live in healthy homes don’t get sick as often, which means they do better in school. Parents who live in healthy homes are more successful at work because they are not called out as frequently to care for a sick child. Families who live in healthy homes are not overly burdened by high medical bills or energy costs – this means they have more money to spend in our local economy.

To ensure that the homes we build are healthy, we adhere to high standards and green practices in building, rehabbing, and maintaining our properties. Our goal is that over 90% of our 365-unit portfolio meets healthy homes standards by the end of 2020. Here are some examples of how we will reach that goal:

134 of our apartments are EnergyStar rated.
32 of our apartments are LEED certified (29 Gold, 3 Silver).
24 apartments are being built to the Passive Building Standard.
We are currently seeking funding to do a major rehabilitation project on 65 units in Ashland and Meredith that were built in the 1970s and require significant upgrades to meet healthy homes standards. We purchased the properties in 2016 to preserve them as affordable rentals and bring them up to healthy homes standards.
We are working on the funding package to add solar arrays to a cluster of six, two-family buildings in Laconia that will save each of the 12 families living there an average of $645 each year. These units have been completely rehabbed in recent years – they are some of the first properties in Laconia that we redeveloped in the 1990s.

Building Community at Pinecrest

Ten families living at Pinecrest Apartments in Meredith signed up for the second year of the community garden. We had perfect weather on May 23rd for the garden planting event! Everyone got their hands dirty prepping the raised beds and planting their veggies. Thank you to NH Electric Co-op Foundation for providing funding last year for all the supplies to build the garden.

3rd Annual Putt Putt Tournament

Mark your calendars for this fun, family-friendly annual event!

The 3nd Annual Putt Putt Tournament Presented by Meredith Village Savings Bank to benefit Lakes Region Community Developers will once again be held at Pirate’s Cove of Winnisquam.

The event includes a hot lunch and beverage, prizes, raffles, and giveaways. Registration is limited to the first 144 paid registrants. Registration will start at 10:00am. The format is a four person team. If you do not have a foursome we will match you with other individuals. Prizes are awarded to the top three teams. Please register and join us on September 29th, 2018. Contact Caitlin Meaney at [email protected] or at 603.524.0747 ext. 108 for more information.

HOMEteam News - Homebuyer Seminar

Do you or someone you know want to learn more about buying your home or are not sure where to start? HOMEteam's next First Time Homebuyer seminar will be on Saturday, July 14th from 8:30am to 4:30pm in Manchester, NH. This program reviews the Steps to Home Ownership and gives you the tools and resources needed to make good financial decisions at every stage of the home buying process.

To register click here.

Green Tip - Green Grilling

As a NeighborWorks America Green Designated Organization we have incorporated green practices across all lines of business. As an organization it is important to us that we remain steadfast stewards of our precious resources and inspire our neighbors to see the value and ease of incorporating green practices into their lives. We hope you enjoy our monthly Green Tip.

While the environmental impact of grilling is negligible compared with most of the other things we do in our day it is important that we take every aspect of our lives into consideration when it comes to combating air pollution and our carbon footprint. You can make grilling green by making a few changes to the way you grill and the kinds of products you buy.

Click here for 10 suggestions to make your outdoor cooking more environmentally friendly.