About the Race: A 5K Run/Walk and Kids Mile put on in conjunction with the St. John Neighborhood Association and the For the City Network to benefit the newly formed Community Housing Development Organization – a not-for-profit that was created to build and maintain affordable housing in the area. The “Born to Run” Kids Mile will provide neighborhood school children an opportunity to run in a race for absolutely no cost. Directed under the guidance of the RunTex Foundation, students will be provided with a free race t-shirt and pre-race health and fitness clinic.
About the St. John Development Organization: Recently formed, the SJDO looks to model after other local and national Community Housing Development Organizations in an attempt to build, restore, and maintain affordable housing. Their specific focus is in the St. John Neighborhood – a low-income community in central-east Austin. The goal is to develop quality and affordable housing and encourages individual and family self-sufficiency through homeownership. Across the United States, other CHDO’s have served tens of thousands of families through providing economic development, education, and real estate development. Post-race, the first targets for the SJDO will be two houses that the city currently owns. Through restoration of these houses, they can be rented or sold at affordable rates in an effort to stabilize mobility.
For more information on the State of Texas’ rules, regulations, and FAQ’s on Community Housing Development Organizations, please click here.
