How Healthy Are Homes in Des Moines Neighborhoods? The new door-to-door survey will help them find out and help homeowners make improvements. A city survey team is heading into Des Moines’ 50 neighborhoods and more than 96,000 homes. They say healthy homes make a city a better place to live. “Many things have changed. A lot of people have moved in and a lot of people have left,” Odell Jenkins said. He lived in the Martin Luther King Jr. neighborhood. Park for 55 years. Some houses look tidy. Some may need a new roof or some paint. As a neighborhood association leader, Jenkins says he welcomes some help. “That’s what we try to do as a neighborhood. we try to keep our neighborhood up,” Jenkins said. “We’re trying to get an idea of the health of our neighborhoods based on the structures that are in them,” said SuAnn Donovan, Des Moines Deputy Director of Neighborhood Services for the city. Donovan is working on a big project…they’re checking every house in the city of Des Moines. Seeing things like roofs, walls and windows. It is a first-of-its-kind project to control housing stock. “It’s going to be a great statistical tool to help us understand what’s really going on,” Donovan said. If houses fall into disrepair, demolition is often the last resort. The city wants to avoid this by helping homeowners with home maintenance. The city is not doing zoning enforcement. It offers volunteer programs including financial assistance. “We’re going to reach out to them and ask them if they want to participate because it’s going to be voluntary,” Donovan said. Ultimately, the goal is to make neighborhoods look good, increase property values, and make the city a better place to live. Just what Odell Jenkins likes to hear. “To build our neighborhood. that’s very important to me,” Jenkins said. The city hopes that the housing survey in the neighborhood will be done by the end of the year. New programs to help fix homes should be ready to start at the same time.
How Healthy Are Homes in Des Moines Neighborhoods? The new door-to-door survey will help them find out and help homeowners make improvements.
A city survey team is heading into Des Moines’ 50 neighborhoods and more than 96,000 homes. They say healthy homes make a city a better place to live.
“Many things have changed. A lot of people have moved in and a lot of people have left,” Odell Jenkins said.
He lived in the Martin Luther King Jr. neighborhood. Park for 55 years. Some houses look tidy. Some may need a new roof or some paint. As a neighborhood association leader, Jenkins says he welcomes some help.
“That’s what we try to do as a neighborhood. we try to keep our neighborhood up,” Jenkins said.
“We’re trying to get an idea of the health of our neighborhoods based on the structures that are in them,” said SuAnn Donovan, Des Moines Deputy Director of Neighborhood Services for the city.
Donovan is working on a big project…they’re checking every house in the city of Des Moines. Seeing things like roofs, walls and windows. It is a first-of-its-kind project to control housing stock.
“It’s going to be a great statistical tool to help us understand what’s really going on,” Donovan said.
If houses fall into disrepair, demolition is often the last resort. The city wants to avoid this by helping homeowners with home maintenance. The city is not doing zoning enforcement. It offers volunteer programs including some financial assistance.
“We’re going to reach out to them and ask them if they want to participate because it’s going to be voluntary,” Donovan said.
Ultimately, the goal is to make neighborhoods look good, increase property values, and make the city a better place to live. Just what Odell Jenkins likes to hear.
“To build our neighborhood. that’s very important to me,” Jenkins said.
The city hopes that the housing survey in the neighborhood will be done by the end of the year. New programs to help fix homes should be ready to start at the same time.