A Holiday Carol for New Homeowners

The holiday season is a time for family and friends to gather together. No matter what the activity, being able to share the season with loved ones and create new traditions is all that matters. For two families, next-door neighbors in the Lindsay Heights neighborhood, 2001 marked the first year that they would be able to celebrate the season in the comfort of their own homes.

In the late 1990’s, the restoration of Lindsay Heights began to take shape due to initiatives launched by WHEDA and the City of Milwaukee, who sought to turn the blighted neighborhood into a utopia for prospective homeowners. Lots owned by the city were purchased for one dollar, allowing new homes to be built from previous structures or constructed from scratch.

For Joy, the opportunity to move into a home with her three children was too amazing of an experience to pass up. Hundreds of others shared those same feelings. Together, residents of the Lindsay Heights neighborhood sparked change, and in the spirit of the holidays joined with one another to celebrate. Joy relished the time sitting outside on her new porch, which emitted the smell of fresh paint and reminded her so much of her childhood home, and couldn’t help but smile when her neighbors passed by.

Pictured are just two of many families that started developing new roots in the Lindsay Heights neighborhood and experienced the sense of pride and community that was being fostered there. Thanks to similar collaborations between WHEDA and the City of Milwaukee, projects such as the Metcalfe Park neighborhood continue to come to fruition. For excited new homeowners and their families, Lindsay Heights continues to be a source of comfort not only during the holiday season, but throughout the whole year.