The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority is now managing one of Hamilton County’s oldest redevelopment agencies.
The Port Authority reached a management agreement with Homesteading & Urban Redevelopment Corp., a private nonprofit that focused on community development such as renovating homes in low- to moderate-income areas.
Ed Rust, retired president of Centennial Savings Bank and long-time affordable housing advocate, has led the organization since 2005, and will assist the port staff through the transition.
The roots of the urban homesteading program go back to 1976, when the federal government sought to ease the number of homes repossessed following mortgage default by owners with federally insured loans. Cities created programs assisting residents to be able to afford these homes. In Cincinnati, HURC staff and board of directors have created and implemented programs that have resulted in the sale and renovation of hundreds of single-family homes.
