Rep. Cleaver’s Statement on HUD Assuming Responsibility for Parade Park
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO) released the following statement after the Department of Housing and Urban Development assumed responsibility for Parade Park.
“Today is a necessary step forward for the future of the residents of Parade Park, one of the oldest Black-owned housing cooperatives in the United States and an integral component of the 18th & Vine District in Kansas City. A number of unfortunate decisions have left the co-op in a state of deep despair, with over half the units vacant and many units in disrepair. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has now taken mortgagee-in-possession of Parade Park and installed a property management contractor to handle daily operations and ensure the health and safety of residents.
“It must be noted that this is the first step of many that will need to be taken, together, to save and revitalize this historic piece of Kansas City. In late July, I met with HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge in Washington, DC, where we discussed a number of options to rescue Parade Park and stabilize the property. She telephoned me on Friday to inform me that she and her staff had determined that HUD assuming responsibility and working with property ownership and the community was in the best interest of residents. In the very near future, the HUD management team will meet with residents to ensure that tenants are informed and part of the decision making process going forward.
“The Secretary has assured me the Department remains committed to improving the property in a way that will benefit residents and ensure our shared goal of preserving an important affordable housing asset for hardworking Missourians. HUD will immediately begin making a full assessment of the property to determine next steps, and the Secretary has asked me to be attentive to the fact that the Department will need additional dollars to restore the integrity of the development and make the repairs necessary for tenants to live in safe, quality housing. This will be a top priority for me in Congress and must be deemed equally important for the State and City as well.”
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Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Blue Springs, Grain Valley, Oak Grove, North Kansas City, Gladstone, Claycomo, and all of Ray, Lafayette, and Saline Counties. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee; Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development, and Insurance; member of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress; member of the Committee on Homeland Security; and a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus.