Brownsville Demo Home 6-4-03

PATH - A Public Private Partnership for Advancing Housing Technology

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June 4, 2003

PATH, Community Development Corporation of Brownsville team up to build homes for low-income families using advanced technologies

New technologies in homebuilding that reduce material costs, improve energy efficiency and durability, and lessen the impact on the environment will be on display in a demonstration home--not a futuristic model, but a sample of low-income housing in "colonia" settlements. The home, built by the Community Development Corporation of Brownsville (CDCB) and developed with technical assistance from the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH), will be unveiled Wednesday, June 25, 2003, at 9:30 a.m. in the Colonia Cameron Park, 2724 Gregory Avenue in Brownsville, Texas. See the feature article in The Brownsville Herald.

Special guests State Senator Eddie Lucio, County Commissioner John Wood and Cynthia Leon, regional director of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, will attend the opening event. The home will be under construction during the event; area builders and other visitors will have the opportunity to view some of the innovative technologies in the home and learn about their benefits to the overall construction.

PATH, administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, collaborated with CDCB and the Rio Grande Valley Multibank to achieve common goals of building economical and energy-efficient homes for people with the greatest housing needs. In many cases, new homes are replacing shacks and other substandard buildings that are structurally unsafe and lack proper plumbing and other basic equipment. Some 150 replacement houses have been constructed in colonia areas of Brownsville. This demonstration home is the first colonia house in which PATH technologies are included--from an improved framework design to energy-saving appliances--that will benefit those most in need of a reduction in energy costs. The Brownsville colonia home is one of many demonstration sites across the country sponsored by PATH, as part of a national effort to improve housing quality for all people through local partnerships.

The demonstration home has been built with the assistance of the CDCB's YouthBuild program, which provides work opportunities for local low-income youth who have dropped out of school. Twenty-five homes in the Brownsville colonia have been built thus far with YouthBuild workers. The CDCB's Rural and Colonia Loan Program is helping to finance the construction of affordable homes in this and other blighted areas in the region.

PATH technologies will be showcased as they are placed in the house. These improvements help eliminate unnecessary lumber and materials, meet more stringent Texas building codes for wind resistance, utilize advanced cooling techniques, and bring some of the most ingenious energy-saving and environmentally-sound building techniques and products on the market today to the demonstration home.

Read more information on the Brownsville Demonstration Home.

About PATH:
PATH is a public-private initiative dedicated to accelerating the development and use of technologies that radically improve the quality, durability, energy efficiency, environmental performance, and affordability of America's housing. PATH offers comprehensive information and other tools for builders, developers, housing providers, and homeowners primarily.

About The Community Development Corporation of Brownsville:
The Community Development Corporation of Brownsville (CDCB), the largest non-profit single family housing developer in Texas, provides a range of services to improve the lives of the people of Brownsville, Texas. The CDCB sponsors loan lending programs, job development services, housing construction, and other community and education programs in partnership with local government and industry.

Content updated on 3/8/2005

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