Dillehay Courts is preparing for a revamp! While once a sought-after location for many families in the early 1970s, INLIVIAN’s last public housing development, has declined with age and in many cases become obsolete.

Our initial concept for the site was to rehabilitate the units. After due diligence, it was determined that residents would be better served by redeveloping the 48 year old property in its entirety. When INLIVIAN shifted strategies, we also gave Dillehay residents who wanted to move, an opportunity to relocate.

The property will be redeveloped in phases. The new design will increase the number of families served and more effectively utilize the nearly 18 acres of land in Charlotte’s Innovation Corridor.  INLIVIAN’s continued presence in the area will be an emblem of inclusion for families who would otherwise not be able to live in and enjoy this burgeoning locale in the Queen City.

The fight against source of income discrimination (SOID) has been heavily covered in the news over the past year. SOID is when a housing provider refuses housing based on an applicant’s source of income. SOID occurs when income sources such as disability, social security, child support, school loans and other non-wage income sources like housing choice vouchers are denied by a housing provider. INLIVIAN, Habitat for Humanity and other non-profit organizations have been urging Charlotte’s City Council to amend the Fair Housing Ordinance to provide protections against income discrimination. INLIVIAN’s Resident Advisory Council (RAC) is also a partner in this effort and has been working to educate residents in our communities on the impact of SOID  and the increased challenges it creates when trying to access housing. On February 22^nd,  RAC, INLIVIAN, Habitat for Humanity, NAACP Charlotte and other organizations, all a part of the 32 organizations that make up the All Income Counts Coalition, held a rally in front of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center to push for the ordinance to be amended during City Council’s Business Meeting.

RAC stood tall with their signs in hand, marching to the chant of “all income counts.” There were residents from across the city raising their voices and taking a stand against SOID. The rally’s efforts did not go unnoticed, local news stations were present to capture the event.  The rally, in addition to all of the actions taken by the coalition, helped make a difference as the City Council voted favorably on three items focused on protecting renters from SOID:

1. Create a requirement that all rental units built with city funds accept Housing Choice Vouchers.
2. Create a local advisory committee of affordable housing professionals, housing providers, advocates and residents to address the challenges of Source of Income Discrimination (SOID) in the City of Charlotte.
3. Determine whether to adopt changes to the local Fair Housing Ordinance based upon results of the advisory committee.

We want to thank RAC for joining the fight against SOID and continuing to make a difference, but we’re not finished! Discrimination in any form should never be tolerated.

INLIVIAN’s Information Technology team continues to be innovative. The team in partnership with Yardi, a property management software and services company, to create an online portal that helps families interact with the agency more effective and efficiently. Families on our wait list can check their application status and update any personal information. Current INLIVIAN residents can now apply to other properties in our portfolio from the comfort of their own home. To get started all families have to do is create an account on our website: www.inlivian.com/application-portal. For additional information families can call the Customer Service Center at 704-336-5183.