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**Hotel Update**
There are no more
rooms available at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at conference
rates. The standard rate at the Hyatt is twice the rate
we have reserved. Other nearby hotels are also experiencing
a space crunch due a city-wide event. So book your hotel
now. Alternate hotels:
Hotel George,
202-347-4200
Washington Court
Hotel, 202-628-2100
Holiday Inn on
the Mall, 202-638-1616
(Note. HAC does
not have a conference rate at these hotels but as of this
posting they had rooms available.)
Dear Friends:
Please join the Housing Assistance
Council for the HAC National Rural Housing Conference 2006,
December 6-8 at the Hyatt Regency Washington in Washington,
D.C., with pre-conference activities on December 5. Reconnect
with old friends, meet new colleagues, and access knowledge
and resources that will help build and maintain decent,
affordable housing in rural America.
This year’s conference theme, Building Communities, Celebrating Partnerships, honors HAC’s local partners for their contributions to rural America. It reaffirms HAC’s continuing commitment to work with these partners, providing community-based organizations with the resources needed to build affordable housing for the poorest of the poor in rural America.
Speakers, workshops, and peer forums will encourage dialogues throughout the conference on the role of partnerships in rural community development. Participants will learn strategies from local leaders and influence the policy priorities of national leaders. Seminars, workshops, and roundtables will be organized in four tracks: Affordable Housing Development, Organizational and Capacity Development, Resource Development, and Innovative Approaches and Current Policy Issues. Conference participants will also have the opportunity to schedule visits on Capitol Hill.
Former Senator John Edwards, Director of the Center on Poverty, Work, and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina, has been invited to deliver remarks at the opening plenary and set the tone for the rest of the conference on the promise of partnership. We have also invited a number of national policymakers to address conference participants, including Representatives Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and the leadership of the Congressional Rural Housing Caucus - Chair Rubén Hinojosa (D-Texas) and Vice Chairs Artur Davis (D-Ala.) and Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.).U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and USDA Rural Development staff will be asked to participate in a nuts and bolts session on housing policy and programs.
At the closing breakfast plenary, HAC will facilitate a dialogue among local nonprofit developers, intermediary organizations, foundation representatives, and government agency staff to identify challenges affecting the provision of affordable housing in rural America and the resources required to meet current and future housing needs. A series of agenda-setting workshops during the conference will help shape the issues for discussion. Together we will create a Rural Housing Agenda that can be used by all stakeholders to frame policy and development activities for rural America in the coming years.
The conference is not only a learning and networking opportunity, but also a celebration of individual and joint efforts to develop and sustain decent, affordable rural housing. The Rural Housing Awards Banquet is HAC’s to local and national rural housing practitioners who have made a difference in the lives of low-income rural people. Participants are also invited to join in celebrating HAC’s completion of 35 years of building rural communities throughout the conference.
As always, HAC has tried to offer participants the best workshops and networking sessions, while keeping costs as low as possible. With the assistance of conference sponsors HAC has raised scholarship funds to help representatives of as many organizations as possible attend the conference.
We are excited about the 2006 conference and we look forward to working with you to develop the skills and celebrate the leadership that builds affordable rural housing.
In community,
Gideon Anders, Board Chair; Arturo Lopez, President; Moises Loza, Executive Director
Save these Dates
December 6-8: National Rural Housing Conference 2006 in Washington DC
October 31: Early registration deadline
Scholarship application deadline
Deadline to request pre-conference meeting space
November 13: Deadline to make hotel reservations
Deadline to pay HAC any balance due for registration
Deadline to submit dietary and other special requirements
Announcements
Register early and win! Every paid registration received by October 31 will be automatically entered for special prizes.
Drawing on October 31!
Prizes
- Complimentary 3-night stay at the Hyatt during the conference
- A complimentary registration to help bring a colleague to the conference
Online: Go to Registration Page
Fax: Download PDF and fax to 202-347-3441
Mail: National Rural Housing Conference 2006
Housing Assistance Council
1025 Vermont Avenue, NW
Suite 606
Washington, DC 20005 |