Huntington Hometowns: FUEL Franklinton
Mission Statement: FUEL’s mission is to stabilize and positively impact our community through the lens of housing. We are a non-profit, Community Development Corporation (CDC), Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO) in Franklinton, Columbus, Ohio
Serving Since 1993: Franklinton Development Association (operating as FUEL Franklinton) has a 26-year history in the Columbus neighborhood of Franklinton. The organization started as a board-led non-profit aimed at creating affordable homeownership opportunities in Franklinton.
Expanding Mission: FUEL Franklinton’s mission has broadened over the years to address the affordability for Franklinton’s renters, who currently occupy approximately 70% of the homes in the neighborhood, and who will face displacement brought on by the changing characteristics of the community. The first strategy is the development of affordable housing for low-to-moderate income individuals and families in Franklinton. The second strategy is to create programming that empowers current residents. The third strategy is to connect residents with available resources in the community through Franklinton.org.
Affordable Housing: FUEL Franklinton, individually and through partnerships, has successfully acquired, developed, and rented or sold more than 170 affordable housing units. The organization continues to develop affordable housing in Franklinton, with a particular focus on building and rehabbing more affordable rental units for the neighborhood.
Money-Management Programming: The Financial Life-skills Program is open to Westside residents that live in zip codes 43222, 43223, and 43204. The program teaches participants money management and job-training skills. Participants are connected to community resources while in the program and earn a cash incentive upon completion the program. So far, we’ve celebrated 70 graduates of the program.
Community Resource Tool: In August of 2018, FUEL Franklinton launched Franklinton.org, a community resource website. The goal is to inform, involve, and connect community members to aid and resources in Franklinton. These resources are divided into 10 categories: emergency services, health & social services, food, housing, education, business & workforce, faith, youth & family, recreation & arts, and government services. In just nine months, there have been more than 12,000 page views to the website.
