- An historic St. Louis neighborhood is getting a facelift with help from a well-known civil rights attorney.
Frankie Freeman loaned her name to a group of new homes for low-income residents that have just been completed in the Ville neighborhood.
At age 92, Freeman has a long list of honors and recognitions. Now, add to that, the Frankie Freeman Ville Estates.
The ribbon cutting on Stephanie Bradford’s porch, symbolized the completion of the Freeman Estates project. Bradford, a single mom, has lived in the Ville most of her life. She was among the first tenants.
In all, 27, three-bedroom homes are being rented on Lincoln Street, bounded by Sarah Street and Bishop Phillip Scott Ave.
The nearly $7-million dollar project is a joint effort involving community organizations, banks, local, state and national governments. That includes the Northside Community Housing, Inc., St. Louis Equity Fund, 4th Ward Alderman Sam Moore, City of St. Louis, and the Missouri Housing Development Commission, which provided state and federal low income housing tax credits.
Frankie Freeman has often specialized in housing issues. She was the lead attorney for the landmark NAACP case, Davis vs. the St. Louis Housing Authority, which ended legal racial discrimination in public housing.
“After all these years I’ve been involved in the struggle for equality in housing, (it’s good) to see this wonderful, wonderful program and what it means as far as the community is concerned,” Freeman said.
The Freeman homes are just the start for this community which people around here say has had more trouble than triumphs in recent years. In fact, 20 more homes are scheduled to be built next year.
“We don’t have a lot of riff raff on our street and I really do believe that the houses have brought some calmness to the area,” said Stephanie Bradford.
Just a brief historical note: the Ville neighborhood dates back to 1800′s, and for years it was home to many African-American professionals and cultural institutions.
