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Town of Pulaski Dora Highway Neighborhood Revitalization
Overview
The Dora Highway Neighborhood is an older working-class neighborhood in the Town of Pulaski. The neighborhood provided housing for the workers that supported the once thriving iron industries that operated in town. The Town's core industries have since closed and the Town's population has significantly declined, as has the population's median household income. The demographic composition of the Dora Highway Neighborhood made its residents most susceptible to the loss of income. Topographically, the neighborhood is characterized by extreme slopes with an average slope of 40%. The neighborhood was identified as the area in most urgent need of revitalization. The houses exhibit a wide range of deficiencies; the streets were poorly constructed due to the topography; waterlines are undersized; and an abundant number of abandoned structures pose a blighting influence in the neighborhood.
Approach
A neighborhood study, funded under a 2008 CDBG Planning Grant, assisted the Town in identifying specific community development and housing needs in the neighborhood. The proposed improvement plan focused on the rehabilitation of houses in conjunction with water and street improvements. Abandoned properties will be acquired for blight removal and will allow for the construction of new infill housing for home ownership in order to help preserve the neighborhood.
Implementation of the plan is underway with a 2009 CDBG construction grant of $1.4 million. The total project budget is $2.2 million including Town funds and partnerships with the New River Valley HOME Consortium and Community Housing Partners. The project will benefit 154 persons of whom 89% are low- and moderate-income.
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