Talent Shows the Way Forward;“This is Actually Happening”

Volunteers. Collaboration. Making the most of resources. Tapping multi-lingual, robust, local non-profits. Helping families rebuild.

This is something CRT stands behind, and this is the sort of effort that leads to real results. Need a case in point? The City of Talent has received $7 million in state funds that will go towards affordable housing to convert the Talent Mobile Estates into a resident-owned neighborhood, a significant rebuild post-Almeda fire. CASA of Oregon has been able to ramp up this project with the help of the local non-profit Coalición Fortaleza, with everything targeted and in place for 2024.

What does this mean? Self-determination. This is huge for those who have sometimes felt powerless through the fire, and the bureaucracy that is the aftermath. The Talent Mobile Estates is being purchased from the previous owner for the people who will live there – primarily fire survivor households who have lived there before.

These various nonprofits have been working (tirelessly!) to bring back the residents of this neighborhood after being displaced from the 2020 Almeda fire. The idea to buy the land and have the neighborhood be resident-owned came from a previous resident. It’s definitely an energizing, encompassing program. “Decision-making power will be fully in the hands of families,” the organizers said. “The past 20 months we’ve been exploring this idea of what would it look like to purchase land and bring back families to Talent or to Phoenix,” says Érica Ledesma, Executive Director of Coalición Fortaleza.

“Truly this is a crystallization of a dream”. She says that now that CASA has been successful in purchasing Talent Mobile Estates “this is not just any idea anymore, this is actually happening.” Community engagement has played an important role in the project. Volunteers have made phone calls to the displaced families, they’ve hosted cultural gatherings and provided food to gain that sense of community.

Many of the residents are part of the Latino community, and this project wants to build upon these people’s voices and represent their culture, and wisdom. And though these great groups of people maynot realize it, they very well may indeed provide a model for other affected communities – from the innovation of buying properties, to targeting your community, to communicating via different languages…it’s a great combination.

So for those who may have turned cynical, depressed, or overwhelmed during this almost- two-year cycle, be of hope: Many wonderful non-profits are rebuilding a community, in creative, innovative, and collaborative ways.

A final note: former residents of Talent Mobile Estates can contact Jennifer with CASA of Oregon at Jennifer@casaoforegon.org