Eight Georgia communities honored for promoting affordable housing and project innovation

ATLANTA – November 16, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — The Georgia Initiative for Community Housing (GICH) program recognized the cities of Covington, Gainesville, Pembroke, Rome, Thomasville, Valdosta, Vienna and Washington for their efforts to increase affordable housing and to revitalize their communities at the “Celebrating a Decade of Success” awards event held October 21 at the UGA Georgia Center in Athens.

The panel of experts considered the following criteria in making their recommendations for awards: measurable benefits to affordable housing in Georgia; the degree to which the project or innovation can be replicated; how well the project or innovation responds to the identified need or opportunity; and cost-effectiveness.

GICH is a collaboration of partners including: the University of Georgia’s Housing and Demographics Research Center, a unit of the Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences; UGA’s Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach; the Georgia Department of Community Affairs; and the Georgia Municipal Association. The GICH program is funded by Georgia Power as well as the USDA, through a Rural Community Development Initiative grant. Additional in-kind services are provided by UGA’s Archway Partnership and the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, both units of the UGA Office of Public Service and Outreach, and the Georgia Electric Membership Corporation.

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