Former tenants start moving back to Prospect Homes
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Approximately 45% of the residents who were displaced from the Prospect Homes almost two years ago have indicated that they intend on returning to the Johnstown Housing Authority-owned public housing complex when units are available.
JHA Executive Director Mike Alberts said 25% have declined an offer to come back, while 30% are undecided or have not responded yet, when giving a presentation during the board's regular monthly meeting Tuesday.
More than 200 people were required to vacate the buildings, beginning in March 2023, after multiple structural issues were found, specifically ceilings that were in danger of collapsing.
So far, less than 10 families have received keys to move back into units, with JHA planning to pay the moving expenses for former residents who return to Prospect.
'They got the keys,' Alberts said. 'But did they physically move back in yet? Some of them might still be in that process.'
Alberts said there are signs of 'normal activity' such as people going in and out of the units and CamTran buses making the rounds.
Only a few buildings are ready for occupancy.
Others will be habitable once construction work is complete.
As of the end of January, 77% of the general contracting, 78% of the plumbing and 78% of the electrical was finished, according to Alberts. He said the original contracts call for all work to be done by March 12, noting that no extension has been requested as of this week.
'I feel like it's going good,' Alberts said. 'We were very, very excited to get the first ones done. Now it's just waiting for the next batch. We knew this was going to be a phase-in process. The first phase is done. Now we've got to wait for the next batch of buildings to be turned over to us, so we can go and do that. It's still some waiting. But overall, things are going well.'
Tenants were relocated to other public housing units, Section 8 rental properties and residences not affiliated with JHA.
The authority originally thought some buildings might be ready for occupancy by Thanksgiving, but that did not materialize.
'I just want to get it done,' said Jeffrey Matula Jr., leader of a group of former Prospect residents that formed after they were required to leave the complex. 'Everybody's frustrated. We just want back. It's all boiled into that, we just want back. We're tired of the games. We want our normality back. We miss our front porch, our yards.
'We miss kids being able to play with each other, not having to worry about being jumped, beat up on or picked on. We just want our normality back.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business of Fashion
15 hours ago
- Business of Fashion
Fashion's Musical Chairs Ends — With Men in Almost Every Seat.
LOS ANGELES — This week, with the confirmation from LVMH on Monday that Jonathan Anderson is taking over creative direction of the women's, men's and haute couture collections at Dior, all of the empty chairs at fashion's top houses have now been filled. The pieces are now in place for the biggest fashion month ever this autumn. Among all the creative reshuffling, three of our industry's most talented designers have ended up with three of the biggest jobs at a critical time when luxury is facing a global downturn. In addition to Anderson's new role at LVMH-owned Dior, Demna is gearing up for his debut at Gucci, which will come after his final couture show for Balenciaga in July, and Matthieu Blazy is now installed at Chanel. That most of the big design roles have been filled by men has been a big topic in fashion of late. Save for Sarah Burton at Givenchy, Chemena Kamali at Chloé, Veronica Leoni at Calvin Klein Collection, Louise Trotter at Bottega Veneta and Silvia Venturini Fendi at Fendi, all of the big jobs in fashion are occupied by men. Loewe, Balenciaga, Jil Sander, Celine and Maison Margiela have also appointed men as creative directors. On Thursday, I popped into Neiman Marcus in Los Angeles, to take the temperature of what all of these changes mean. The store was a ghost town with nary a customer in sight. Admittedly, it was only 10:30 a.m. — a bit early for a splurge, but the countless displays shilling luxury fashion and leather goods for 'up to 50 percent off' spoke volumes about the state of the business today. As I was examining the Burberry wares on the ground floor (lots of trench coats and accessories emphasising the Burberry check), one of the store's employees and a dedicated BoF reader approached me to say hello. I asked how business was doing and he simply motioned around the shop-in-shops by Dior, Chanel, Bottega Veneta and Loewe and said all of this is about to change. Customers (and Neiman Marcus sales associates) are mostly in wait-and-see mode, he said, as the upcoming fashion season will bring a lot of creative transformation. This is long overdue. Gucci is the lynchpin of the Kering group, where sales have nosedived. Revenues at Kering's flagship brand plummeted by 23 percent in 2024 to €7.7 billion ($8.8 billion), down from €9.9 billion in 2023. The decline worsened in Q1 2025, with a 25 percent drop year on year. The group's share price has tumbled by more than 60 percent over the last two years. Demna (Getty Images) When Kering executives announced in March that Demna would move from Balenciaga to Gucci in July, luxury market analysts and industry watchers scratched their heads. But I remain convinced that if Demna — one of the most gifted and thoughtful designers working fashion — is able to re-imagine Gucci and move on from his once ultra-popular Balenciaga aesthetic, this could be a very smart move because it simultaneously gives Demna a new creative challenge while breathing new life into Gucci, which accounts for more than 60 percent of Kering's profits. Then there's Chanel, where Matthieu Blazy is in the hot seat. Known for his incredibly creative, globally inspired, craft-focused fashion shows at Bottega Veneta, Blazy has been tasked with upping Chanel's fashion quotient. With the most well-defined codes of any luxury brand, as well as a slew of iconic products (think quilted leather flap bags like the 2.55, bouclé tweed suits and bi-colour patent shoes), the brand is pretty resilient even in times of trouble. Matthieu Blazy speaking at BoF Voices in 2023. (Getty Images) But without a strong fashion direction, Chanel's cultural relevance has waned since the passing of Karl Lagerfeld in 2019. Meanwhile, revenues fell by $1 billion in 2024, down 4.3 percent year on year, as Chanel continued to raise prices by an average of 59 percent between 2020 and 2023, leading customers to question the value of Chanel's products and pull back from the brand's core leather goods offering. Executives are counting on Blazy to bring back Chanel's fashion magic while they think about how to recalibrate their pricing strategy. It's a similar story at Dior, where prices increased by an average of 53 percent over the same period. LVMH does not break out individual brand performance, but said revenues declined by 'slightly more' than the average 5 percent decline in the group's fashion and leather goods division in the first quarter of 2025. In an in-depth interview announcing Anderson's appointment, Delphine Arnault agreed with me that pricing is a big issue to address. For now, she is counting on Anderson's creativity and a focus on customer experience in Dior's upcoming megastores in Los Angeles and New York, to help turn things around. Jonathan Anderson speaking at BoF Voices in 2023. (Getty Images) As I was walking the floor of Neiman Marcus it was hard not to note that with the departures of Maria Grazia Chiuri at Dior and Virginie Viard at Chanel, men are back in charge. While pricing and fashion oomph may have been challenges under their tenures, Chiuri and Viard both oversaw an unprecedented expansion of these megabrands post-Covid, leaving me wondering if what might be gained in fashion relevance could lead to a lack of the connection these female designers were able to foster with their female customers. I've been asking some industry insiders why there is such a paucity of women at the helm of the big brands. One person posited that it's because all of the number two designers — the first go-to when brands are looking to appoint a new creative director — are also mostly men. Seems like that old adage that we tend to pick people who look like us holds true in fashion as well. If this is indeed the case, the change we need to see regarding women in the ranks of the industry's top creative positions needs to start with some of these men appointing more women as their number two. Fine. But there has to be more to it than just this explanation. Truly understanding (and valuing) how women designers connect differently to their customers — and giving them the opportunities to demonstrate this — must also be part of the change. Otherwise, the reign of men in top jobs is set to continue. Imran Amed, Founder and Editor in Chief P.S. Please join us next Monday, June 9 and Tuesday, June 10 for The Business of Beauty Global Forum 2025 livestream with speakers including Hailey Rhode Bieber and Tracee Ellis Ross. Register now. Below are my top picks from our analysis on fashion, luxury and beauty this week: 1. Under Pressure: Can Fashion's Sustainability Efforts Survive? With the industry in tariff paralysis and policymakers rolling back regulation, sustainable fashion advocates worry the movement is running out of steam. (Christophe Stache/AFP via Getty Images) 2. Case Study | The New Rules for Getting Acquired. Securing an exit at a desirable valuation has gotten harder for start-ups in recent years. But brands with strong growth strategies and loyal followings can still attract buyers that will maintain their integrity while taking their businesses to the next level, regardless of economic conditions. 3. How to Revive a Sleeping Beauty Watch Brand. A group of investors is reviving the Danish watch company Urban Jürgensen, a 250-year-old name revered by connoisseurs but largely unknown outside that bubble. (Getty Images) 4. Is Nike Finally Winning With Women? With bold marketing, a revamped leadership team under new brand president Amy Montagne and star power from A'ja Wilson, Nike's long-promised women's push is starting to stick. (Courtesy/Courtesy) 5. Beauty's Hottest New Trend: The Founder Buyback. Original influencer Huda Kattan has regained majority ownership of her namesake beauty brand and sent a message to the greater industry: When it's time to course-correct, you need your best driver. (BoF Team) This Weekend on The BoF Podcast (Sporty & Rich) Emily Oberg grew up far away from the fashion world in Calgary, Canada. After moving to New York for a role at the media company Complex, Oberg quickly built her profile as a tastemaker in the streetwear scene. But eventually, she got the entrepreneurial itch and leveraged her experience to turn Sporty & Rich, which started as a mood board on Instagram, into a multi-million-dollar brand with a dedicated community following. On a recent trip to Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to sit down with Emily to reflect on her unconventional path into fashion, how she made strategic business choices to grow her business, and the significance of world-building in creating an aspirational lifestyle brand. To receive this email in your inbox each Saturday, sign up to The Daily Digest newsletter for agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice that you won't find anywhere else.
Yahoo
17 hours ago
- Yahoo
Volvo Cars unveils multi-adaptive safety belt for EX60
Geely-owned Volvo Cars has introduced a "world-first" multi-adaptive safety belt technology, set to debut in the fully electric Volvo EX60 in 2026. This innovative feature is designed to offer unprecedented protection by adapting to both the traffic environment and the individual characteristics of passengers, utilising real-time data from the vehicle's sensors. The multi-adaptive safety belt represents a significant advancement in automotive safety. It adjusts its settings in response to various factors, including the severity of a crash and the specific profile of the person wearing it. By considering attributes such as height, weight, body shape, and seating position, the system customises the level of restraint provided, aiming to minimise injury risks in the event of a collision. For instance, in a severe crash, a larger occupant would experience a higher belt load setting, which is crucial in reducing the likelihood of head injuries. Conversely, a smaller person in a less intense crash would benefit from a lower belt load setting, decreasing the chance of rib fractures. Moreover, the system's capacity for continuous improvement through over-the-air software updates ensures that the safety belt will evolve and enhance its protective capabilities over time. Volvo Cars Safety Centre head Åsa Haglund said: 'The world first multi-adaptive safety belt is another milestone for automotive safety and a great example of how we leverage real-time data with the ambition to help save millions of more lives. This marks a major upgrade to the modern three-point safety belt, a Volvo invention introduced in 1959, estimated to have saved over a million lives.' In another development, Volvo Cars has reported a 12% decline in global sales for May, with 59,822 vehicles sold. This decrease represents a notable change in the company's sales performance when compared to the same month in the previous year. "Volvo Cars unveils multi-adaptive safety belt for EX60" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Yahoo
COJ and JHA break ground on 5 new affordable homes in Durkeeville
Five new affordable single-family rental homes are coming to Jacksonville's Durkeeville neighborhood. The city of Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Housing Authority, and First Coast Construction broke ground on the project on Grothe Street Friday. During the groundbreaking, Mayor Donna Deegan said they wanted to make a statement with this project. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< 'This is just the beginning,' said Mayor Deegan. 'We're investing in this neighborhood in affordable housing, especially because it is just so critical to bring this neighborhood back. And these five homes are just a great start.' The groundbreaking comes just days after a University of North Florida found that the number one issue concerning Duval voters is housing costs. It far outpaced any other issue on voters' minds this year. These 5 single-family rental homes will be available for people who are on the Jacksonville Housing Authority wait list. JHA said families' incomes will determine the amount they pay in rent. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] I spoke with Cheron Corbett, the CEO of the Jacksonville Housing Authority, about the bigger picture of affordable housing in Jacksonville. 'When we think about the bigger picture as it relates to affordable housing here in Jacksonville, we need to most definitely be strategic,' said Corbett. 'Our focus is on not just rental but long-term economic mobility as it relates to home ownership opportunities.' [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Roderick Dorsey has been living in Durkeeville for all of his life. He says this project is going to make a visible difference to the neighborhood. 'For years you would look over here and look over here, the lots been empty for 50, 60, 70 years. They were coming here, tearing it down, said they were going to rebuild, and never did. To me, this is like heaven,' said Dorsey. The JHA CEO told us the homes are expected to be completed by this September. Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
