2018 ANNUAL REPORT
The Global Voice of the Jewish Community
Senior Housing and Advocacy
Safe, affordable housing for low-income seniors is a top priority for B’nai B’rith. Since 1971, B’nai B’rith has been a leader in senior housing and aging issues.
We are sought-after experts on the global stage in the field of aging in good health. We have leveraged our senior housing expertise into a highly skilled program overseeing legislation that may impact the unique situation of the elderly in the United States and around the world.
We also bring our expertise on aging matters directly to the managers and residents of our senior housing facilities, teaching classes on such topics as fraud prevention and hosting anti-bullying campaigns.
We are sought-after experts on the global stage in the field of aging in good health. We have leveraged our senior housing expertise into a highly skilled program overseeing legislation that may impact the unique situation of the elderly in the United States and around the world.
We also bring our expertise on aging matters directly to the managers and residents of our senior housing facilities, teaching classes on such topics as fraud prevention and hosting anti-bullying campaigns.
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Congressional Staff Visits to B’nai B’rith Housing
In 2018, we focused intently on Congressional and staff visits to B’nai B’rith housing locations across the country to highlight the vital need for law maker’s attention to Section 202 housing, the program that funds low-income housing for seniors.
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This year, visitors to our buildings included: Rep. Cheri Bustos (D–Illinois) to the B’nai B’rith Covenant Apartments in Peoria, Illinois; Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas) at Pasadena Interfaith in Texas; Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Florida) at the B’nai B’rith Apartments in Deerfield Beach, Florida; Marta Gabriel from Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey’s office to B’nai B’rith House in Reading, Pennsylvania; Ken Reichard from Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin’s office to B’nai B’rith Homecrest House in Silver Spring, Maryland; Rebecca Schatz and Artin Haghshenas from New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez’s office to South Orange B’nai B’rith Federation House in South Orange, New Jersey; Stephen Plyler of Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton’s office to Levi Towers in Hot Spring, Arkansas; Kristin Vandergriff of Rep. Kay Granger’s (R–Texas) office to Mollie & Max Barnett and Tarrant County B’nai B’rith Apartments; Alyn Fernandez of Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s office and Alina Garcia of the Florida chief financial officer’s office to B’nai B’rith Apartments of Deerfield Beach, Florida; Jennifer Garner of Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s office to B’nai B’rith Covenant House in Sheboygan, Wisconsin; Patrick McCarthy from Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen’s office and Jarrett Moore from Rep. Jamie Raskin’s (D–Maryland) office to Homecrest House in Silver Spring, Maryland for B’nai B’rith’s “There’s No Place Like Home Day;” and Rep. Donald Payne (D–New Jersey) to South Orange, New Jersey B’nai B’rith Federation House.
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Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-New Jersey) leads a Q&A session with residents at the South Orange B’nai B’rith Federation House in South Orange, New Jersey. |
Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Florida) greets resident and tenants association president, Betty Summers, at B’nai B’rith Deerfield Beach in Deerfield Beach, Florida, during his tour of the building. |
Jennifer Garner, from the office of Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin), visits with residents during a visit and tour of B’nai B’rith Covenant House in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. |
In addition, B’nai B’rith hosted candidate visits at buildings to help focus attention on low-income senior housing. Marty Nothstein visited B’nai B’rith Apartments in Allentown during his run for a congressional seat in Pennsylvania. Congressional candidate Susan Wild visited B’nai B’rith Apartments in Allentown.
B’nai B’rith participated in the Our Homes, Our Voices Housing Week of Action.
Republican candidate for Pennsylvania’s 7th congressional district, Marty Nothstein, visits with residents at B’nai B’rith Apartments of Allentown, Pennsylvania during the lead up to the 2018 midterm elections. |
Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania’s 7th congressional district, Congresswoman-elect Susan Wild, poses for a photo with residents while on a tour of B’nai B’rith Apartments of Allentown, Pennsylvania during the lead up to the 2018 midterm elections. |
As part of the Housing Week of Action, Nairoby Gabriel and Farrah Ridore from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s office visited The Coolidge at Sudbury, Massachusetts.
Our housing experts also held many meetings with lawmakers and their staffs in their Capitol Hill offices to advocate for the continuation of Section 202 housing subsidies in the federal budget as well as to highlight the federal programs that help our residents continue to live independently in their buildings. We met with majority and minority staff from the Transportation Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Committee and the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. We also met with staff for 24 members of Congress who represent B’nai B’rith-sponsored buildings and serve on the Appropriations, Financial Services or Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committees.
Late in the year, we held our Managers and Service Coordinators Meeting in San Antonio, Texas. This annual training conference is for on-site building staff; a majority of the Center of Senior Services housing network attended.
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B’nai B’rith housing experts Janel Doughten and Evan Carmen were presenters/trainers at the 2018 Jewish Community Housing Corporation Third Annual Resident Association Conference. They talked about fair housing, federal government advocacy and inclusivity amongst residents.
Though our commitment to seniors began in the early 1970s when we began acting to correct the severe dearth of housing for low-income seniors, we have built on that knowledge to extend our expertise to all aspects of aging and aging issues. We recognize how healthy aging directly connects to a safe, affordable and engaging home environment. B’nai B’rith International is the largest national Jewish sponsor of low-income housing for seniors in the United States, with 38 buildings in 28 communities. We also sponsor six Canadian buildings in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver as well as additional facilities around the world. In the United States, with funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), we provide safe, affordable housing for more than 5,000 seniors of limited income without regard to race, national origin or religion. In order to fulfill our mission and standards of operations for each building, B’nai B’rith staff provides ongoing training, troubleshooting, programming and advocacy outreach for the entire housing network. B’nai B’rith volunteers provide guidance to each local building within a framework that reflects the needs of each local community. |
Evan Carmen (left), assistant director for aging policy and Janel Doughten (right), associate director for the Center for Senior Services speak with residents of Homecrest House in Silver Spring, Maryland during B’nai B’rith Day. |
The B’nai B’rith Conference on Senior Housing was held from Oct. 27-30 in North Hollywood, California. Sessions included an update from Silvia Cuellar, chief account executive of the Multifamily Housing West Region, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Jenefer Duane, senior program analyst from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, gave a talk entitled “How to Prevent Financial Exploitation of Residents.” There were presentations from the B’nai B’rith Bagel Brigade, as well as training from other experts in the field of senior housing, including B’nai B’rith’s Center for Senior Services staff.
Janel Doughten was invited to train management professionals in September 2018 for SPM, Inc., a large affordable housing management company based in the southeast United States.
Bronx Project
In April, B’nai B’rith Senior Housing closed on a major recapitalization proposal to renovate and modernize the Adelstein Family B’nai B’rith Project H.O.P.E. property located in the Bronx, New York.
Constructed in 1992, it was initially funded under the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program. It consists of 75 one-bedroom apartments and 25 studio apartments. Residents will see what is effectively a new building by the end of 2018. Individual apartments will include new bathrooms with new toilets and bathtubs: new kitchen cabinets, counters and appliances; and all-new lighting and painting throughout. Exterior and common area improvements include new masonry, exterior doors, elevator cabs, windows, plumbing stacks, boilers and pumps. Additionally, state-of-the-art smoke detectors and sprinklers will be added, along with upgrades to the building’s electrical system and security cameras. One of the first items to be added is an individual air conditioner for each resident’s apartment. Overall, the developer intends to complete approximately $8.7 million of building renovations.
Additionally, financial resources are now available to provide for a host of specific supportive and social services for the individual residents. Through partnerships with local service provider organizations, for the first time, residents will have access to referrals to community resources, supportive listening and casework services, as well as a host of new classes, workshops events and activities.
Funding for the project came from the sale of tax-exempt bonds issued by the New York State House Finance Agency through the sale of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). This bipartisan program, initiated in 1986, is overseen by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and is one of the few programs currently available to provide funds for the construction and preservation of supportive housing for low-income people.
Janel Doughten was invited to train management professionals in September 2018 for SPM, Inc., a large affordable housing management company based in the southeast United States.
Bronx Project
In April, B’nai B’rith Senior Housing closed on a major recapitalization proposal to renovate and modernize the Adelstein Family B’nai B’rith Project H.O.P.E. property located in the Bronx, New York.
Constructed in 1992, it was initially funded under the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program. It consists of 75 one-bedroom apartments and 25 studio apartments. Residents will see what is effectively a new building by the end of 2018. Individual apartments will include new bathrooms with new toilets and bathtubs: new kitchen cabinets, counters and appliances; and all-new lighting and painting throughout. Exterior and common area improvements include new masonry, exterior doors, elevator cabs, windows, plumbing stacks, boilers and pumps. Additionally, state-of-the-art smoke detectors and sprinklers will be added, along with upgrades to the building’s electrical system and security cameras. One of the first items to be added is an individual air conditioner for each resident’s apartment. Overall, the developer intends to complete approximately $8.7 million of building renovations.
Additionally, financial resources are now available to provide for a host of specific supportive and social services for the individual residents. Through partnerships with local service provider organizations, for the first time, residents will have access to referrals to community resources, supportive listening and casework services, as well as a host of new classes, workshops events and activities.
Funding for the project came from the sale of tax-exempt bonds issued by the New York State House Finance Agency through the sale of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). This bipartisan program, initiated in 1986, is overseen by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and is one of the few programs currently available to provide funds for the construction and preservation of supportive housing for low-income people.
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B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community.
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