Heartland Housing, Inc.

As the demographics and needs of Chicago’s immigrant and low income population changed, so did the activities of its oldest aid organization, Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights. Recognizing that supportive and affordable housing were increasingly a challenge for those they served, in 1988 the organization created Heartland Housing, Inc. as a development entity to meet the housing needs of Chicago’s most vulnerable residents. Heartland Housing has been successful from the start, with its inaugural project being the preservation of the famous Sutherland Hotel on Chicago’s South Side. Building on that first experience, Heartland Housing has since completed nine developments spread out across Chicago, several of which are exemplary supportive housing facilities. A recently finished project, the Leland Apartments, involved an ambitious gut-rehab of a 137-unit historic building in Uptown, where an affiliate agency is also providing case management and health services. Heartland Housing has had a tremendous impact in the arena of supportive housing for individuals and families, becoming an essential partner in the City of Chicago’s Plan to End Homelessness and the CHA’s Plan for Transformation. As the only Chicago based non-profit developer engaged in a HOPE VI site, Heartland Housing is playing an equally important role for CHA residents as they move from older developments into mixed income housing throughout the city. Bringing both their social service and development experience to the table, Heartland Housing has partnered with private developers for two new mixed-income communities – Jazz on the Boulevard on the South Side and Roosevelt Square on the West Side. While Heartland Housing is the development partner, Heartland Human Care Services – Heartland’s affiliate, will provide community and social services, helping residents prepare for and sustain success in their new homes. For their innovation, commitment and excellence, Heartland Housing, Inc. is recognized as the Non-Profit Neighborhood Development Group of the Year.