When
Oprah Winfrey committed $10 million to help create a new
Houston neighbourhood for families displaced by Hurricane Katrina, the project was envisioned as more than a collection of houses.
asserted
project → commit → houses
It was intended to give evacuees a fresh start and build a close-knit community.
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It → intend → community
The result was Angel Lane, a southwest Houston neighbourhood where 65 furnished homes were built with support from Winfrey's Angel Network, another $5 million donated by viewers and Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
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homes → build → Humanity
But an archival 2009 report by Jennifer Latson of the Houston Chronicle revealed that the community's early years had not unfolded as smoothly as many had hoped.
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many → reveal → Chronicle
Residents treasured their homes but were dealing with disagreements, concerns about crime, dwindling participation in the homeowners' association and frustration over a community centre that had yet to be built.
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that → treasure → centre
From a $10 million donation to 65 homes
Winfrey committed her $10 million shortly after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated parts of the Gulf Coast in 2005.
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Katrina → commit → 2005
Her Angel Network raised another $5 million from viewers.
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Network → raise → viewers
Habitat for Humanity then helped construct 65 homes in the Glen Iris subdivision for families who had been forced to relocate to Houston.
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who → construct → Houston
The houses were landscaped, furnished and offered to residents through highly affordable, interest-free mortgages.
asserted
houses → landscape → mortgages
The first families moved into their homes in February 2006.
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families → move → February
For residents such as Patricia Isaac and her twin sister Pinky Rembert, the houses represented a chance to rebuild their lives after losing their homes and sense of stability in New Orleans.
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houses → represent → Orleans
Isaac recalled meeting Winfrey during a surprise 2005 filming and described the experience as a moment when she felt she was being given the opportunity to “start anew in Houston.”
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she → recall → Houston
Residents loved their homes but feared rising crime
Angel Lane provided 65 furnished homes for families displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. (Photo: Oprah.com)
Despite their gratitude, some Angel Lane homeowners told the Houston Chronicle in 2009 that problems were emerging in the neighbourhood.
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problems → love → neighbourhood
Police had been called to Angel Lane more than 150 times since Isaac moved in, although authorities said the crime rate was not particularly remarkable compared with other Houston neighbourhoods.
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rate → call → neighbourhoods
The incidents ranged from vandalism and fights to break-ins and thefts.
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incidents → range → ins
There had also been a shooting, although police records showed it was a domestic incident and nobody was injured.
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nobody → show → ?
Residents responded by installing security cameras, motion-sensor lights and other precautions.
asserted
Residents → respond → cameras
Jerry Morgan, then 26, installed cameras after his truck was broken into and also got pit bulls.
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truck → instal → bulls
Another resident, Luis Oviedo, said frequent fights among teenagers had made him reluctant to allow his children outside.
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him → say → children
Some homeowners were even considering moving away, despite agreements requiring them to remain in their Angel Lane homes for five years.
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homeowners → consider → years
Community divisions added to residents' concerns
Crime was not the only challenge.
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Crime → add → concerns
The homeowners' association had suffered from disagreements and declining participation.
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association → suffer → disagreements
Residents also complained that neighbours who had been brought together by a shared experience of displacement had not developed the strong community ties they had expected.
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they → complain → ties
The death of HOA vice president Melissa Hurst in 2007 was described by residents as another setback.
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death → describe → setback
Hurst had been regarded as someone who could bring people together, and some residents felt the neighbourhood became more fragmented after her death.
uncertain
neighbourhood → regard → death
Angel Network employee Sheelah Muhammad acknowledged that building a community from scratch was never going to be simple.
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building → acknowledge → scratch
“The transition takes time,” Muhammad said, explaining that residents had to get to know and trust people from different backgrounds while learning how to work together.
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residents → take → backgrounds
The missing community centre became a major sore point
Eight years after residents moved into Angel Lane, its long-promised community center finally opened.
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center → miss → Lane
With no dedicated gathering place, children and teenagers were using the street to play basketball and other games.
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children → use → basketball
Walter Jones, a former director of Harris County's Office of Housing and Community Development who advised the homeowners' association, said Angel Lane faced particular challenges because of its small size and the lower incomes of many residents.
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Lane → advise → residents
He argued that those factors limited the community's ability to become completely self-sufficient.
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factors → argue → ability
Still, Jones pointed to an important achievement: only one family had lost a home because they could not pay the mortgage.
uncertain
they → point → mortgage
The long-awaited centre eventually became a reality
The community centre was not completed during the period described in the 2009 report, but the long-running promise eventually materialised.
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promise → await → report
A 2013 Houston Chronicle report said the project had finally moved forward after years of delays, with a groundbreaking held in September and construction visibly underway.
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construction → say → September
At the time, Angel Lane had 65 homes and an unfinished community centre.
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Lane → have → homes
Then, in June 2014, the Houston Chronicle reported that the community centre had finally opened, eight years after the first residents moved into Angel Lane.
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residents → report → Lane
The facility was designed to provide residents with gathering space, educational programmes and services including financial literacy, workforce development, entrepreneurship and housing assistance.
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facility → design → literacy
The centre included classrooms, a large multipurpose space, a kitchen and an outdoor veranda.
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centre → include → classrooms
Residents who had spent years waiting for the facility welcomed its arrival.
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who → spend → arrival
A neighbourhood built around a second chance
Angel Lane ultimately became a complicated chapter in Winfrey's post-Katrina philanthropy.
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Lane → build → philanthropy
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
