Rowe Street
Morristown
First Interfaith Build
This project is a collaboration with the Madison Affordable Housing Corporation and Church of God in Christ of Morristown. They purchased the lot in June 2006, and Morris Habitat will demolish the existing house and rebuild a two-family duplex. Architect Glenn Stubaus of Molinari Stubaus Architects has drawn plans for a new building on the corner of George and Rowe Streets with two separate driveways and entrances. Each home has 3 bedrooms.
The Rowe Street project (formerly called George Street) is Morris Habitat’s first Interfaith Build. Seventeen area congregations of different faith traditions have joined together to provide funding, planning, construction management and volunteers. Participating congregations include:
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Assumption Church, Morristown |
St. Ann, Parsippany |
Together, the congregations have pledged to raise at least $80,000 for the build and to provide all the volunteer labor and services needed to complete the duplex. Morris Habitat has estimated that the cost of the build, with many services and construction materials donated or discounted, will be roughly $310,000. United Way of Morris County sponsored two rooms with a grant of $25,000 from its Commercial Real Estate Luncheon. An additional source of support is the Charles Lee Hamilton Memorial Fund of $11,000, established as a tribute to a long-time volunteer by his family and friends at the First Presbyterian Church in New Vernon. A Community Development HOME grant, Bank of America and GlaxoSmithKline have also provided partial sponsorship of this project.
To raise funds, participating congregations have held an art auction, hosted a fish-fry dinner, established connections with Friendly’s Restaurant of Morristown for donations of a portion of dinner sales on certain evenings, distributed Habitat house banks for families to collect loose change, and made and sold fresh crepes at the Morristown Farmers’ Market.
Organization and planning for the Interfaith Build is the responsibility of the eleven-member Interfaith Build Steering Committee, chaired by Morris Habitat board member Christine Volinsky.
Two homeowner families were selected by lottery in November 2006 from a pool of more than 150 applicants.
Santiago Lopez is originally from Ecuador. He and his five year-old daughter live with relatives in a crowded home in Dover. Unfortunately, his wife remains in Ecuador and is awaiting papers to enable her to enter the United States. Santiago works as a machine operator in Wharton. He plans to bring his mother to live with them at the new home on Rowe Street, with hopes that his wife will join them there soon.
The second family is Danilo Linares, his wife Paula, a son and a daughter. Both parents are hard-working immigrants, one from El Salvador and one from Honduras. Paula has worked as a food preparer and as a housecleaner. Danilo is employed in recycling. They are now housed in a bungalow in Randolph where Danilo serves as the lake community’s superintendent of facilities.
Pre-development site work started in February 2006. Removal of garbage and debris and salvage of furniture and metals took place in the fall. The existing house was demolished during the winter. A groundbreaking ceremony and reception were held on Thursday, April 12, 2007. After delays due to site constraints, foundation work began in October and framing and siding were completed in December. Interior work was finished during the winter and spring. The dedication ceremony in June 2008 celebrated making a difference in the lives of local families with our 37th and 38th affordable housing units.
The Rowe Street duplex was awarded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star rating, which is given to projects that display superior energy efficiency and environmental protection. “Green design and building practices create healthier home environments through better indoor air quality and healthier building materials,” said construction supervisor Russ Moran. The Energy Star designation was based on tight construction and ducts, effective heating and cooling systems, effective insulation, high-performance windows and the use of energy-efficient products.
For more information, contact:
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Chair, Steering Committee
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Communications Coordinator
If your group would like to sponsor a similar build project, please speak to the executive director or the development director at the Morris Habitat office at 973.891.1934.
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