History

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, top leaders on the Mississippi coast formed The Gulf Coast Business Council, a 501(c) 6 organization established to provide a unified, regional voice on important matters of public policy which affect the economic vitality and quality of life of the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The organization is now comprised of more than 200 of the top business and economic leaders in the three coastal counties of Mississippi. Many of the members are small business owners. Mayors and presidents of the county boards of supervisors serve as ex-officio members of the organization along with our military base commanders, economic development professionals, chambers of commerce executives, regional planning directors, and port and airport directors. The Council is organized into committees that focus on issues associated with economic development, tourism, military and defense related industries, transportation, leadership development, building, and land use. Two critical priorities for the Council are legislative/governmental issues as it relates to the rebuilding effort and affordable housing for the workforce.

The Gulf Coast Business Council recognized that the Coast’s recovery would not occur in a balanced and efficient manner unless one entity was created and empowered to remove the obstacles associated with the redevelopment of the coastal communities and serve to guide the redevelopment effort to prevent further deterioration and to ensure an equitable distribution of housing for the workforce. In response to the unprecedented need, the Gulf Coast Business Council formed the Gulf Coast Renaissance Corporation.

Renaissance Corp. breathes new life into housing

Sun Herald, Biloxi, Mississippi
May 24, 2007
Editorial

To fully appreciate the impact the new Renaissance Corporation can have on the future of South Mississippi, try imagining that future without such an innovative, nonprofit group:

• Traffic, traffic, traffic. The greatest loss of housing resulting from Hurricane Katrina was near the shoreline, where thousands of jobs are concentrated. Without intense efforts to develop housing for workers near their jobs, most of the affordable housing would be far to the north, greatly increasing commute times, fuel costs and traffic congestion, while decreasing quality of life.
• Huge housing gap. Land and insurance costs have sent building costs skyrocketing, along with the prices that builders and developers must charge for houses and apartments. Without some new and creative financing programs, thousands of middle-income workers would not be able to afford the homes that are built.
• Decaying city cores. Infill housing — replacing destroyed or aging homes near our cities’ downtowns — is a vital key to redevelopment that would be ignored by developers seeking higher profit margins and less-complicated land purchases.
• What new jobs? South Mississippi’s growth would stall, because businesses do not bring jobs to places where housing for employees is unavailable or unaffordable.

This unattractive future could be ours, but a number of local leaders stepped up and said, “We can do better.”
Recognizing that traditional market forces would leave significant gaps in South Mississippi’s post-Katrina housing needs, the Gulf Coast Business Council created Renaissance. The goal is to assist in making housing available for the average working family, those earning 80 to 120 percent of the average median income — too much for any federal programs, but not quite enough for our suddenly higher housing market. Because mixed-income housing is the organization’s model, the benefits will touch all income levels.

Then Chairman Anthony Topazi, president and CEO Laura Davis, and a diverse local board are off and running with the challenge to develop safe, affordable and attractive housing for the local work force.

Key steps in reaching that goal will include significant capitalization, an estimated $50 million to $100 million in private and public funds, for land acquisition and creative financing programs. Recognizing that such a large investment carries large responsibility; Renaissance pledges that its operations will be transparent, inclusive and accountable.

Renaissance will bring together and work with developers, employers and a broad advisory group of local organizations and other nonprofits. Where appropriate, it welcomes the background role of facilitator. “We don’t want to be duplicative or competitive,” says Topazi, “we want to be compatible and cooperative.”
All across South Mississippi, people are working together toward the goal of rebuilding a beautiful place where people want to live, work and play. By accomplishing its goals, the Renaissance Corporation will enable thousands who want to . . . to be able to afford to.

The editorial above represents the views of the Sun Herald editorial board: Publisher Ricky R. Mathews, Executive Editor Stan Tiner, Chief Financial Officer Flora S. Point, Opinion Page Editor Marie Harris and Associate Editor Tony Biffle.

 

The most critical issue facing the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s future is the availability of affordable, safe, attractive housing for the workforce of the region. Housing is needed for the workers who drive the economy such as shipyard workers, gaming employees, school teachers, first responders, oil refinery and industrial workers. It is recognized that until these employees have affordable housing options within a reasonable distance of their workplace, the Coast’s economic recovery (much less the unprecedented opportunity for growth and prosperity) will not be realized.

The Gulf Coast Renaissance Corporation focuses its efforts in the three coastal counties (Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson) where the communities’ vitality is threatened due to the northward migration of the population following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina – a response to the subsequent barriers such as high insurance rates and the increase in land and building costs. To combat the threat of further deterioration within communities that have suffered tremendous loss, Renaissance embraces sustainable land use practices by making the development of mixed income, mixed use communities a priority - specifically focusing on the provision of housing for the workforce defined as households earning 120% or below of the area median income.

Renaissance’s focus on the "urban core" is driven, in part, by the responsible land use practice of spatially matching jobs, which are concentrated along the coastline, and housing. At the same time, Renaissance requires sensitivity in the redevelopment effort as it relates to environmental priorities, such as wetlands, elevation requirements, and location outside of potential storm surge. Renaissance embraces new urbanist and smart growth principles. Renaissance’s structure is intended to serve as a facilitator in the redevelopment effort.