To see Calumet City’s Ginger Ridge apartment community back in the early 1990s was to glimpse a rental property in the final stages of decay.
Outside, metal railings were not only dangerously unstable, they were shedding their orange paint. “And the roofs were bad,” recalled Rae C. McCray, a resident then and now. “They were patching them with tar, and the water would come into the units. The gutters in some places were hanging loose.”
Inside, things had deteriorated to such an extent that only about half of the community’s 931 units were still occupied, said McCray. “We had all these vacancies, and some buildings had only one or two families living in them,” she said.
“In some cases, five or six people were living in one-bedroom units of 400 square feet.”
Worst of all, Ginger Ridge was anything but the kind of place where residents, especially children and senior citizens, felt safe. “We did have a gang problem,” McCray acknowledged.
Few who visited Ginger Ridge then would recognize it today. A renovation begun in 1997 and slated for completion this summer has resulted in a reconfiguration of all units, with smaller apartments being combined into duplexes. Overall, the number of apartments in Ginger Ridge has been cut in half, to just more than 400 units.
New bathrooms, kitchens and carpeting have been installed inside. Outside, the red- and buff-colored brick buildings have been spruced up with green accents, and new windows, tuckpointing and landscaping have been added.
“It’s absolutely beautiful,” marveled McCray. “We have actual two-and three-bedroom town homes with upstairs and downstairs. We have beautiful green grass and landscaping, whereas before there was just concrete parking-lot space that looked horrible. The seniors walk around all the time, because they feel safe. It’s magnificent to see. If you could see it before and see it now, it’s just awesome.”
Along with physical improvements have come enhancements that promise to help foster a stronger sense of community. Ginger Ridge now has a community center called the Rev. Princeton H. McKinney Learning Center, which offers after-school, day-care and educational programs, as well as activities for senior citizens. Six computer work stations provide children and adults with Internet access, and the center offers dance lessons and an affiliation with a 4-H club.
Such a massive transformation would have been impressive under any circumstances. But the fact that this renaissance was orchestrated in large part by the residents themselves makes the rebirth of Ginger Ridge all the more inspiring.
“The story of Ginger Ridge is really a coming together of the faith community with the residents to form a partnership to turn around one of the most troubled properties in the south suburbs,” said Bill Goldsmith, executive director of Harvey-based New Cities Community Development Corp.
New Cities is the housing and economic development arm of the South Suburban Action Conference (SSAC), a multidenominational organization made up of 140 congregations stretching from Chicago’s South Side to Joliet.
“We had to develop a vision, and that vision was of a place where people not only lived, but where they could develop a vision of their own families’ future, and realize that within the context of Ginger Ridge.”
Several core principles were necessary to make this vision reality, added Goldsmith. First, the residents had to control and manage their community. Second, it had to be a place where growth and learning could take place. And third, the people who lived in Ginger Ridge before it was redeveloped had to be able to stay after it was rehabilitated.
As Goldsmith noted: “Why fight for something that you’re just going to be thrown out of? It’s really their blood, sweat and tears that are in this community. They built this place.”
In the four years between the time SSAC began to work with the residents and the day in 1997 when they took title of the property, said Goldsmith, much had to be done.
First, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development administration, which had foreclosed on the previous owner and now owned Ginger Ridge, had to be convinced that the residents’ plan had merit. “That took two to three years by itself,” recalled Goldsmith.
Then, private and public funding had to be assembled. “We had to put together the private partners, including the banks–principally LaSalle Bank with the assistance of First Chicago NBD and Fannie Mae and the Illinois Housing Development Authority, to provide the private financing,” said Goldsmith. “Cook County, under president (John) Stroger, put up a sizable grant, and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago put up a sizable grant.”
Political and religious figures also helped push the plan forward. Calumet City Mayor Jerome Genova convinced Calumet City residents and the city council that the redevelopment was the right thing for both Ginger Ridge and the city. U.S. Reps. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) and Jerry Weller (R-Ill.), then U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley-Braun and the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin also championed the project.
The redevelopment was a joint effort of New Cities and Rochester, N.Y.-based Signature Housing Solutions, which came aboard in 1996 to manage the property for seven years and oversee a transition in management.
Said Signature’s president Christina Alletto: “We’re working with the board of Ginger Ridge and with New Cities to accomplish one of two things: prepare residents to take over management themselves, or help prepare residents to act as asset managers and appoint a new property management company.”
The Ginger Ridge Mutual Housing Association was established to help accomplish this task. Residents participate in the association through an executive board comprised of Ginger Ridge residents and members of the surrounding community.
“This is the ownership entity, and they make decisions on the property manager, approve operating budgets and develop rules and regulations regarding the apartments,” said Pam Gecan, a principal with American Marketing Services of Chicago, a marketing consulting firm that serves developers and not-for-profit firms involved in development.
“This is a very real empowerment for the residents, and a chance for them to have input into decisions regarding the property,” added Gecan.
Said June Webb, another American Marketing Services principal: “Residents are involved in every aspect of the management process, including screening prospective (residents) who apply to live there.”
Responsible for board development is Rae McCray, who, in her capacity as director of resident initiatives, trains residents in management skills and helps ensure the board continues to help move residents from a renter’s to an owner’s perspective.
From his perspective, Goldsmith believes the mutual housing association has come together beautifully. “The key to this whole thing has been the way the residents have become involved in every aspect of the management and marketing of Ginger Ridge,” he observed. “They really own this project.”
In the future, McCray hopes residents will take part in Calumet City’s city council meetings and township board meetings, and that the Ginger Ridge Mutual Housing Association will come to be a model for such organizations throughout the Midwest.
McCray notes that people who have never before seen the community are awestruck. “They say, `My God, this place is beautiful,’ ” she commented. “Ginger Ridge looks just like residents wanted it to look, because we’re part of everything that goes on here.”
