| Logan Fontenelle Housing Projects |
Article Index for Logan Fontenelle |
Website Links For Logan |
Information AboutLogan Fontenelle Housing Projects |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT LOGAN FONTENELLE HOUSING PROJECT | |
| 1938 architecture | |
| north omaha, nebraska | |
| buildings and structures in omaha | |
| public housing in the united states | |
| history of omaha | |
| former buildings and structures of the united states | |
| houses in omaha | |
|
HISTORY The housing projects were named in honor of Logan Fontenelle , an Omaha chief. Built by the Public Works Administration during the Great Depression , Logan Fontenelle was originally built as no-cost or low-cost housing for European immigrants, including Germans, Italians and CzechsMatthias, J. (1992) ''Reading Old Friends: Essays, Reviews, and Poems on Poetics, 1975-1990.'' SUNY Press. p. 30.. Many young people in Logan Fontenelle during this period regarded the projects as a haven.Randolph, L. and Shevchuk-Murray, N. (2007) ''The Big Empty: Contemporary Nebraska Nonfiction Writers.'' p. 125. After initially supporting limited public housing in Omaha in 1936, the city's business community became adamantly opposed to Logan Fontenelle by the time it was completed in 1938.Bednarek, J. (1992) ''The Changing Image of the City: Planning for Downtown Omaha, 1945-1973.'' University of Nebraska Press. p. 86. The projects were segregated through the 1950s, with restrictions against since 1966.(2006) "Heartland Family Service Ruth K. Solomon Girls Center Celebrates 40th Anniversary with Arts Performance." Retrieved 6/26/07. RIOT In the 1960s there were several riots in the Near North Side, largely attributed to the history of Racial Tension In Omaha . After two earlier riots in 1966 and 1968, in 1969 riots erupted again after an Omaha police officer fatally shot teenager Vivian Strong in the back of the head near Logan Fontenelle. Riots began after the judge at the preliminary hearing, Walter Cropper, found the shooter, Officer James Loder, not to be criminally accountable for the shooting. A contemporary report states, "Windows were broken and fires set in dozens of commercial buildings on and off Omaha’s 24th Street strip. The riot leapfrogged east to west, from 23rd to 24th, and south to north, from Clark to Lake." (n.d.) Distilled in Black and White ''Omaha Reader''. LAWSUIT In 1990 a Civil Rights lawsuit on behalf of the African American residents of Logan Fontenelle alleged that Omaha's public housing discriminated against racial minorities. A class action suit was brought against the Department Of Housing And Urban Development that year. In ''Hawkins v. Cisneros'' the Omaha Housing Authority and the City of Omaha were determined to have violated the U.S. Housing Act , Title VI of the Civil Rights Act Of 1968 as related to the development and the administration of Omaha’s public housing, the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment s to the U.S. Constitution and other federal statutes, regulations and guidelines. A 1994 settlement required that former residents displaced by the closing of the Logan Fontenelle Housing Project receive counseling and rent assistance, relocation assistance payments, an opportunity to have additional assistance through Section 8 vouchers and certificates, and assistance to find housing in areas of Omaha with low minority populations.(2000) Nebraska Fair Housing Strategy: 1997-2000. Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Retrieved 6/25/07. p. 4. DEMOLITION AND REDEVELOPMENT The Omaha Housing Authority began demolishing Logan Fontenelle in 1991 and 1992. The demolition was completed in 1995.Nygren, J. and Grace, E. (2006) "Pleasantview Homes Are Coming Down," ''Omaha World-Herald.'' Retrieved 6/25/07. Omaha's Family Housing Advisory Services was involved in placing 785 of the Logan Fontenelle residents into homes across the city.(nd) [http://www.fhasinc.org/welcome.htm About Us]. FHAS. Retrieved 6/25/07. Today, the North Omaha Business Park, "a joint effort of the Omaha Chamber and the City Of Omaha ... a 15-acre development" on the Logan Fontenelle site.Beals, J (n.d.) [http://www.omahacityweekly.com/article.php?id=890 Coming Soon: Three more businesses make Omaha’s future look brighter. Omaha City Weekly. The Conestoga Place neighborhood was built on another part of the Logan Fontenelle site. The neighborhood is comprised of new single-family dwellings built in a suburban-type style.(nd) What's New . Conestoga Place Neighborhood Association. Retrieved 6/25/07. NOTABLE RESIDENTS Cathy Hughes , the founder and president of Radio One , grew up in Logan Fontenelle while her father was attending was attending Creighton University . He was later to become the first African-American to earn an accounting degree at Creighton."Owning the airwaves - Cathy Hughes buys radio stations for African-American programming." ''Essence.'' Jones, C. October 1998. Seminal rock and roll pioneer Wynonie Harris lived in Logan Fontenelle for a short period in the 1960s. SEE ALSO REFERENCES BIBLIOGRAPHY
|
|
|