Habitat hits snag of rising costs
First home to open in Ashland Meadows
Hurricane Katrina destroyed her home. Her children were uprooted by a move to St. Louis in October 2005. She was living off funds from Catholic charities, the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross.
But Rhodes has come a long way with the help of Habitat for Humanity. On Sunday, she'll open the door to a brand-new home.Rhodes and her two children, Michael, 14, and Terrika, 7, were one of eight families chosen to move into Ashland Meadows, Habitat's second and largest subdivision in St. Charles County. Plans call for three more houses by July and four more by October. Once completed, the $1.2 million project, planned at East Pearce Boulevard and Wilson Street, will bump the number of Habitat homes in Wentzville to 20 and the total in St. Charles County to 38.
"It's just very rewarding," Rhodes said of her experience with Habitat. "(Volunteers) came from all walks of life; they never met me, and a large number of people came out. That says a lot about people in general and in the area."
Yet, building homes isn't as easy for Habitat as it used to be.
Rather than give houses to low-income families, Habitat provides an opportunity for them to pay the costs through a 20-year, interest-free mortgage. Applicants also must spend 350 hours helping to build the home, along with local churches, businesses and other volunteers.
The Ashland Meadows subdivision, St. Charles County Habitat's largest undertaking to date, required a three-year fundraising campaign. As the organization has only one main fundraiser per year, which raises about $40,000, it must rely mostly on land and monetary donations. Land typically costs about $20,000 to $25,000, and building materials cost about $65,000.
In the past, donations were frequent, said Ashlee Johnson, Habitat's executive director. People were willing to help or wanted to boost an area's image. Cities regularly sold lots to Habitat for $1.
Times, however, have changed.
"After being here 10 years, obviously land prices have gone up and it has affected us," Johnson said. "We just want to be able to get in there and build. (Now) we don't jump on certain opportunities because it's going to cost."
Habitat's St. Louis affiliate has dealt with the same problem, but the challenge isn't as great, as land in many areas of St. Louis still is significantly cheaper, said the organization's CEO, Kimberly McKinney.
As any costs increase, the need for Habitat's service increases, making the need to support it even greater, she said.
St. Charles County Habitat knows.
Although Ashland Meadows provided a chance to get eight families into affordable homes, Habitat had never dealt with infrastructure on that large of a scale. The result was challenges with easements, resubmitting plans to the city, grading problems and the cost that came with all of it, Johnson said.
There are no regrets, she said, but Habitat lacks a volunteer with the knowledge and experience that's required for similar projects, which causes officials to think twice about future developments.
For example, the St. Charles affiliate was for a time considering taking on just more than 11 acres of property near Heppermann Road in Wentzville, which had the potential to accommodate about 34 Habitat homes.
However, the project would have required infrastructure work that ultimately could have significantly raised the cost of the development, Johnson said. Consequently, Habitat stepped away and must wait for enough volunteers with such experience.
That wait can be frustrating.
"We don't want to just be waiting on our next opportunity to fall into our laps. We want to be proactive and get more people into affordable homes," Johnson said.
To avoid such problems in the future, Habitat is hoping to stick to building rather than developing. The organization currently needs land that already is developed. It will do infrastructure work if necessary, so it also needs additional volunteers, Johnson said.
For some people, such as Rhodes, that help can mean the world.
"I'm trying to maintain my composure," she said of the approaching house dedication. "Then, sometimes when I'm at home, I'll have a quiet moment to think. I might start to cry."
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WANT TO HELP?
For more information on how to help or donate to St. Charles County Habitat for Humanity, call 636-978-5712.
