Neighborhoods are the fabric of our community. Providing residents with the educational resources and tools to maintain their homes helps build strong community pride and civic engagement.
Serving Neighborhood Needs
Neighborhood Preservation hired a downtown commercial/residential code inspector to address unique issues and nuances of the downtown area. The short-term rental ordinance went into effect in August 2023 and the city’s Code Enforcement team will oversee resident concerns and enforcement.
“Building Blocks, a neighborhood planning tool, continued to be used to gather analytical data to best determine how to direct city resources to serve residents.
Neighborhoods USA, a national non-profit, awarded Chandler two “Best Neighborhood Program” awards for "For Our City Day" and "Golden Neighbors".
Neighbors Make Quality Neighborhoods
Golden Neighbors
Golden Neighbors hosted six events and assisted 337 Chandler seniors. The free program for “golden” residents provides community and educational opportunities on relevant topics.
Good Neighbor 101
More than 140 Chandler residents attended Good Neighbor 101, a free series of four sessions that brings together multiple city departments to educate attendees about city programs and resources.
HOA Academy
HOA Academy had 129 participants who came away with updates on state laws that impact their communities, information on city code, and tips to become an involved neighborhood leader. In addition, 23 neighborhood grants were awarded to both traditional and HOA communities totaling $67,000.
Envision program
Now in its second year, the Envision Program held six events in three neighborhoods: Amberwood South, Galveston, and Historic South Chandler. This outreach effort helps inform and engage interested residents in preserving the quality of neighborhoods.
Volunteers Make a Difference
Volunteers with the city’s Let’s Pull Together program assisted 39 homeowners in need with yardwork, alley clean up and painting the exterior of homes.
Approximately 1,250 volunteers came together for the annual For Our City Day, Chandler’s take on national Make a Difference Day, to assist with 47 project sites in the Colonia Coronita neighborhood.
Housing and Assistance Programs
Successfully housed 28 families experiencing homelessness with new emergency housing vouchers and 25 people experiencing homelessness through a tenant-based rental assistance program.
Funding through the Federal Emergency Rental Assistance program assisted 2,030 households with $14,887,300.85 in rent and utility assistance.
Awarded $1.4 million to 48 nonprofit organizations that support the delivery of human services to Chandler residents.
Completed the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development audit process for the Community Development Block Grant and Community Development Block Grant CARES Act.
Homelessness Resources
A grant from Maricopa County provided housing stability services to persons transitioning from homelessness into city-supported or other housing.
A contracted motel provided non-congregate shelter to Chandler residents experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
A grant from Maricopa County provided heat relief services for persons experiencing unsheltered homelessness or housing instability. By the numbers:
- 8,619 hours of heat relief daytime services
- 10,232 bottles of water
- 13,484 meals and snacks
- 220 instances of laundry services
- 609 showers to individuals in need
The Arizona Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired recognized Team Chandler’s Riann Balch with the Polly Thompson Award for emergency services rendered to a Chandler resident who is blind and experiencing homelessness.
Public Housing Sites
Achieved a 99% lease-up rate for public housing and an 85% voucher utilization rate for Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8), while exceeding federal standards for providing public housing that is decent, safe and sanitary for residents.
Recent improvements of public housing sites include basketball court resurfacing at three sites and a full repaint of another site.
Chandler continued a partnership with Maricopa County’s Headstart program with two classrooms at public housing sites. 278 unduplicated youth were served in the after-school program and more than 700 books were distributed to low-income youth ages 0-18.
Youth Public Housing Site Bucks Store
Youth at public housing sites benefited from more than 250 donated gifts from generous Chandler residents and city employees that go toward youth programs, including the Site Bucks Store.
Employee of the Year
Arizona Chapter of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials and Arizona Housing Authority Directors Association recognized Team Chandler’s Vickie Ellexson as Employee of the Year for Housing Choice Vouchers.