DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 25, 2024--
Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson joined officials from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) today to tour Oak Lawn Place, a new affordable housing development in Dallas, Texas, that received a $750,000 FHLB Dallas Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant.
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The grant supported the development of Oak Lawn Place, an 84-unit apartment complex for people 55 and older that includes support for the LGBTQIA+ community.
“There is a nationwide lack of affordable housing. For low- to moderate-income families, affordable rental housing remains a particularly significant obstacle. The Affordable Housing Program helps fund affordable housing developments like Oak Lawn Place, making housing more accessible for more seniors,” said Director Thompson.
AHP grants fund a variety of projects, including home rehabilitation and modifications for low-income, elderly and special-needs residents; down payment and closing cost assistance for first-time homebuyers; and the construction of low-income multifamily and single-family homes. This year, FHLB Dallas is making available nearly $100 million in AHP grants through members to finance affordable housing.
“This initiative addresses a critical need in our community, and we are proud to play a role in making it a reality,” said FHLB Dallas President and CEO Sanjay Bhasin. “This has been a great opportunity to witness the positive effect the AHP and member partnerships are having here in Dallas-Fort Worth, and it’s exciting to have Director Thompson tour this project to see first-hand the impact it will have on the surrounding community.”
The AHP grant was provided through Dallas-based Veritex Community Bank (Veritex).
“Our long-standing relationship with FHLB Dallas and the AHP provided a great opportunity to support a much-needed affordable housing development,” Veritex Senior Vice President and Community Development Officer Courtney Taylor said.
Since the inception of AHP in 1990, FHLB Dallas has awarded more than $400.6 million in AHP grants to support nearly 65,000 units of affordable housing.
The apartment complex, nestled among mature trees with a view of a creek, is designed to help older individuals age in place and will include a variety of amenities, including meeting rooms, a fitness center, a dog park and onsite activities. The two-building development includes mostly one-bedroom apartments and is situated with easy access to healthcare facilities, public transportation and entertainment. Rent will be income-based.
“The generous $750,000 AHP grant was a component of the capital stack that has made it possible for Resource Center to create Oak Lawn Place, a welcoming residential development that we are proud to bring to Dallas,” said Cece Cox, Resource Center of Dallas (Resource Center) CEO. Resource Center partnered with Volunteers of America to develop the $30 million Oak Lawn Place.
The FHFA was created by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 to oversee Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank System, which together provide more than $8.1 trillion in funding to the U.S. mortgage markets and financial institutions.
About Director Sandra Thompson
Director Thompson, sworn in as FHFA director in June 2022, has more than 40 years of private and public sector finance experience. Prior to leading the agency, Director Thompson served as Deputy Director of the Division of Housing Mission and Goals (DHMG) for nine years, overseeing FHFA’s housing and regulatory policy, capital policy, fair lending and mission-critical activities for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks, which are government-sponsored enterprises regulated by FHFA. Before joining FHFA, Thompson worked at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for more than 23 years in a variety of leadership positions, most recently as the Director of Risk Management Supervision.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank system created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $125.1 billion as of March 31, 2024, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced advances and other credit products to approximately 815 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. Visit fhlb.com for more information.
From Left: Melissa Bradford with Veritex Community Bank; Libby Crank with Resource Center; Dana Cooper, with Veritex Community Bank; and Bruce Hatton with Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas. (Photo: Business Wire)
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson (Photo: Business Wire)
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson (second from left) and Deputy Director Joshua Stallings (left) joined Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) CEO and President Sanjay Bhasin (far right), and FHLB Dallas Board of Directors Chair Fred Miller (third from left) for a tour of an affordable senior housing project in Dallas, Texas. The project received a $750,000 grant from FHLB Dallas. (Photo: Business Wire)
ST. LOUIS, MO. (AP) — At least four people died and others were hurt after severe storms including a possible tornado swept through St. Louis.
The storms Friday afternoon tore roofs off some buildings, ripped bricks off of siding and downed trees and power lines as residents were urged to take cover.
St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer confirmed the deaths.
At Centennial Christian Church, City of St. Louis Fire Department Battalion Chief William Pollihan told The Associated Press that three people had to be rescued after part of the church crumbled. One of those people died.
National Weather Service radar indicated that a tornado touched down between 2:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. in Clayton, Missouri, in the St. Louis area. It received reports of damages, mostly downed trees, weather service meteorologist Marshall Pfahler said.
The apparent tornado touched down in the area of Forest Park, home to the St. Louis Zoo and the site of the 1904 World’s Fair and Olympic Games the same year, Pfahler said.
Police were urging no travel and said on social media that first responders were being called to storm damaged areas.
“If you do not have to travel, PLEASE STAY HOME,” the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said in the post.
The St. Louis Zoo posted a message on X, the messaging platform formerly known as Twitter, that it would remain closed for the rest of the day because of the weather. The post included no information on damages, a zoo spokesperson didn’t immediately return a phone message seeking comment.
“We can’t definitively say whether or not it was a tornado -- it likely was,” Pfahler said.
Radar also confirmed a tornado above Venice, Illinois, about 2:50 p.m. CDT. It could be accompanied by golf ball-size hail, the National Weather Service in St. Louis said. Venice is northeast of St. Louis, just across the Mississippi River.
The weather service described the tornado as “extremely dangerous” and moving east at 50 mph. The tornado is part of a severe weather system that spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin, downed trees, left thousands without power in the Great Lakes region and brought a punishing heat wave to Texas.
Weather forecasters warned that severe storms with hail and even hurricane-force winds could hobble parts of Appalachia and the Midwest on Friday. Tornadoes were also a risk there.
The National Weather Service said residents in Kentucky, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, parts of Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas and Ohio should brace for intense storms that could include baseball-sized hail.
The weather service's Storm Prediction Center said that “strong, potentially long-track tornadoes and very large hail” could be expected. The threat for damaging winds in excess of 75 mph will increase into this evening as storms grow into larger clusters.
Ahead of Friday night’s anticipated storm, Appalachian Power, which serves 1 million customers in West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee, said Friday it requested 1,700 additional workers from neighboring utilities along with sending its own crews from unaffected areas to assist with service restoration.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, in a post on the social media platform X, put residents on notice.
“Kentucky, there is a dangerous weather system moving through our state with a significant round this afternoon through tonight. Strong winds, hail, flooding and tornadoes are possible starting at 2 p.m. CT in Western Kentucky and reaching Louisville around 5 p.m. ET,” he said.
Shelters were opening in the Paducah, Kentucky, area.
Faith Borden, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service Nashville office, said Friday that middle Tennessee could expect "all types of severe weather. Winds up to 70 mph. We’re talking seriously large hail up to 3 inches, which for us is big hail.”
Texas, meanwhile, faced searing heat. A heat advisory was issued for the San Antonio and Austin, with temperatures at a blistering 95 F (35 C) to 105 (40.5 C). Parts of the southern East Coast, from Virginia to Florida, battled with heat in the 90s.
The National Weather Service Office for Austin/San Antonio said Friday the humidity coming in over the weekend is expected to make temperatures hotter.
“There are concerns of heat exhaustion for people that aren’t taking proper precautions when they’re outdoors,” meteorologist Jason Runyen said. He advised those affected to take breaks and stay hydrated.
Overnight Thursday, storms accompanied by booming thunder, lightning displays and powerful winds swept through parts of Wisconsin, Illinois, northern Indiana and Michigan — leaving scores of trees down and thousands of homes without power.
Several tornadoes touched down Thursday in central Wisconsin. None of the twisters have received ratings yet, said Timm Uhlmann, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Green Bay.
“We’re still gathering reports,” Uhlmann said. “We’re assessing some of the damage and still getting video and pictures. The damage that we have is fairly widespread. There was a lot of large hail. In Eau Claire was one report of softball-sized hail.”
No injuries have been reported.
Surveys also were underway Friday of damage in Michigan to determine if any tornadoes touched down there, said Steven Freitag, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in White Lake Township, northwest of Detroit.
The storms were fueled by temperatures in the lower 80s that stretched from Illinois into Michigan and were activated by a cold front that pushed through, Freitag said.
By midday Friday, about 230,000 customers were without power in Michigan. An estimated 60,000 were without power in Indiana. Another 27,000 in total had no electricity in Illinois and Kentucky.
The threat of severe weather in Chicago delayed a Beyonce concert by about two hours Thursday at Soldier Field.
Associated Press writer Haya Panjwani in Washington and Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri, contributed to this story.
Part of Centennial Christian Church in St. Louis, Missouri, collapsed on Friday, May 16, 2025 when severe storms, including a possible tornado, swept through the city. (AP Photo/Michael Phillis)
Part of Centennial Christian Church in St. Louis, Missouri, collapsed on Friday, May 16, 2025 when severe storms, including a possible tornado, swept through the city. (AP Photo/Michael Phillis)
Part of Centennial Christian Church in St. Louis, Missouri, collapsed on Friday, May 16, 2025 when severe storms, including a possible tornado, swept through the city. (AP Photo/Michael Phillis)
Cody Sparks, left, and Eric Combs with Lewis Tree Service work to clear a tree off of a power line near on 92nd Street near Caledonia, Mich. on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
Zeeland resident Maddie Pellegrini clears debris outside her family's home on 64th Avenue in Drenthe east of Zeeland, Mich. on Friday, May 16, 2025. (Isaac Ritchey/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A snapped utility pole stands awkwardly off of 92nd Street near Caledonia, Mich. on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree is uprooted from Thursday night's storm in Trail Creek, Ind., on Friday, May 16, 2025. (Donavan Barrier /La Porte County Herald-Dispatch via AP)
Downed trees are shown blocking Leo and Oakland Avenues in Trail Creek, Ind., on Friday, May 16, 2025. (Donavan Barrier /La Porte County Herald-Dispatch via AP)
A snapped tree is shown up against an apartment on Salem Court in Michigan City, Ind. on Friday, May 16, 2025. (Donavan Barrier /La Porte County Herald-Dispatch via AP)
Damage from Thursday's storm is shown along U.S. 20 in Michigan City, Ind., on Friday, May 16, 2025. (Donavan Barrier /La Porte County Herald-Dispatch via AP)
Trees lay in a playground in Dorr, Mich., after a severe storm ripped across Michigan the night before, on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake /The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree branch covers a bus in Dorr, Mich., after a severe storm ripped across Michigan the night before, on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake /The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lays in a parking lot in Dorr, Mich., after a severe storm ripped across Michigan the night before, on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake /The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
A tree lays on a house in Dorr, Mich., after a severe storm ripped across Michigan the night before, on Friday, May 16. 2025. (Neil Blake /The Grand Rapids Press via AP)
