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As ASII began to focus on community rehabilitation through affordable housing development, we realized that housing alone would not necessarily build community and mitigate the true loss in the neighborhood. After talking with residents and meeting with the neighborhood association, the installment of a community center offering comprehensive social services became our next initiative. Therefore, ASII’s mission slightly changed to assist the rebuilding efforts of families and communities by providing affordable homeownership opportunities and expanding access to vital community services.
Thus, in July of 2006 ASII launched a monumental effort to purchase and build out a community center in the St. Claude neighborhood with high hopes that it would combat social issues ranging from health and education to workforce development.
On May 5, 2009, ASII celebrated the grand opening of the Clifford N. Rosenthal Community Resource Center located at the intersection of St. Claude and Desire. This center, named after National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions President/CEO Cliff Rosenthal who has been a life-long champion of the underserved, will offer free first-time homebuyer classes, one-on-one credit counseling, financial literacy education, and other asset-building services. In the near future ASII hopes to also provide a small health clinic, daycare and small credit union branch, as none of these services currently exist in this area. Furthermore, we believe this new center will transform the St. Claude community into a vibrant place for families and children to live. |
