Welcome to the Interfaith blog.

Friday, May 29, 2026, marked a long-anticipated moment for Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware (ICHDE). On a beautiful morning in Milford, Delaware, community leaders, housing advocates, and a distinguished delegation of federal, state, and local officials gathered at the community center of ICHDE’s Colony South & Colony West affordable housing communities to break ground on Lafayette Place, a new affordable housing development.

This project represents an expansion of our long-standing mission in Kent County, paving the way for permanent, affordable homeownership opportunities directly adjacent to our Colony South & Colony West communities. The ceremony marks not only the start of this exciting development project, but also the culmination of decades of planning, community investment, and the steady work of partners across every level of government committed to expanding workforce housing in Delaware.

The Predevelopment Puzzle: Solving the Infrastructure Challenge

Building affordable housing requires overcoming massive upfront hurdles, primarily the steep capital needed for site preparation long before a single home frame can rise. Lafayette Place is moving forward cleanly thanks to a hard-won $2.5 million HUD Congressional Directed Spending (CDS) grant, championed by U.S. Senators Chris Coons and Lisa Blunt Rochester, and U.S. Congresswoman Sarah McBride.

As covered by NeighborworksAmerica and regional media outlets, including WBOC-TV, WBOC , Bay to Bay News, Delaware Public Media’s WDDE 91.1FM, the Delaware News Journal / Delaware Online, Delaware Business Times, Milford Live, AOL, and others, this critical federal injection funds the underlying site infrastructure. This funding will immediately support new road construction, land grading, and connecting the property to City of Milford utilities.

Our Resource Development Director, Catherine Davis, framed this structural challenge during an on-site interview with Delaware Public Media:

“When we receive funding, everyone wants to see the projects done within two years. And that’s great if you’re actually building a house… this land is not ready for that. Putting in the roads, putting in the sewer systems, putting in all of the infrastructure that needs to go in… it’s almost impossible to receive funding for, because it takes so long to get it from this to an actual home.”

Davis also highlighted why building affordable infrastructure in Milford is an urgent economic priority for the entire region as coastal property values climb:

“There’s a lot of wealth at the beach, and one of the worries is that this area is going to gentrify because of that. So it’s even more important to have affordable housing here, because this is where a lot of the industry is.”

By removing these infrastructure barriers, the federal grant allows ICHDE to preserve its direct development resources to maximize density and maintain an accessible final purchase price for working-class families. Initially envisioned as a modest deployment of single-family homes, collaboration with our partners at Architectural Alliance has allowed us to dream bigger. The site plan now scales from a baseline of 36 single-family homes up to a high-density footprint of 95 modern townhomes targeting families earning roughly 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI).

Lafayette Place By-The-Numbers

The scale and legacy backing this development provide a solid framework for our community footprint:

Metric	Project Target / Impact	Source & Alignment
Federal Infrastructure Funding	$2,500,000	HUD Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS)
Total Planned Capacity	36 to 95 Units	Single-Family Homes to High-Density Townhomes
Target Demographic	~80% Area Median Income (AMI)	Working-Class Kent County Families
ICHDE Legacy Balance	2,000+ Units / 19,000+ Clients	Housing Units Developed and Clients Counseled Since 1968
Total Capital Infused Statewide	$80,500,000	Community Investment Infused into DE Neighborhoods to Date

Voices from the Shovel Line: Leadership & Media Reaction

The groundbreaking drew massive support from our strategic partners, resulting in extensive prime-time coverage across Delmarva networks. An excellent media turnout captured our executive team live on-site as the ceremonial shovels hit the dirt on the property line dividing our legacy communities from the future neighborhood expansion.

During her opening address, Darlene Sample, Executive Director of ICHDE, reflected on the decades of quiet preparation that led to this public milestone:

“Long before plans were drawn or construction began, this land carried history, resilience, and hope. Interfaith purchased this land in March of 1994, and for more than 30 years it has represented vision, perseverance, and commitment to our community.”

Catherine Davis underscored that emotional history by holding up a heavily handled, crinkled bundle of original blueprints brought to her office years prior by Housing Development Manager Carlton Bowers. As noted by the Daily State News, she told the crowd: “You know how much something is loved by how much it is handled.”

The “Dynamic Duo” of Federal Housing Support

U.S. Senator Chris Coons delighted the audience by referring to himself and Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester as the “dynamic duo of housing”, noting that while she authorizes programmatic frameworks on the Senate Housing Committee, he secures the direct appropriations.

Senator Coons delivered an impassioned defense of residential investments that was highlighted by the Delaware Business Times:

“I cannot think of a more important investment we make as a society than quality, affordable, safe, sanitary, decent housing. Housing is the platform on which everything else rests. Do you want better families? They need stronger housing. Do you want better schools? They need better housing.”

Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester brought a powerful message of personal alignment, sharing her own lived experience moving from public housing into her family’s first owned home on 39th Street in Wilmington. Channeling the motto of the development’s namesake, the Marquis de Lafayette, she challenged the system with a booming query:

“Pourquoi pas? Why not? Why not? Shouldn’t every child in this country live in a safe home? Why not? Shouldn’t everybody who has a job know that I don’t have to work five jobs to live in an apartment? … There’s no ‘why not’ here, ’cause we’re gonna do it.”

A Crucial National Endorsement: NeighborWorks America

A true highlight of the ceremony was a powerful, data-driven endorsement from Marietta Rodriguez, President and CEO of NeighborWorks America. To introduce her, Delaware Governor Matt Meyer shared an inspiring piece of background regarding her lifelong commitment to housing equity: at the age of 25, Rodriguez was simply a homebuyer in Santa Fe, New Mexico, searching for an affordable place to live. After acquiring her first home through a local partner of NeighborWorks America, she rose entirely through the ranks of the organization to become one of the premier housing experts in the United States.

Speaking to the crowd during NeighborWorks Week, a national designation celebrating how community organizations and local residents collaborate to strengthen neighborhoods, Rodriguez lauded ICHDE’s ability to completely break the old, outdated stigmas surrounding affordable housing developments:

“When people historically think about affordable housing, they don’t always picture beautiful trees, integrated playgrounds, and modern infrastructure. This is an incredible standard, and we are proud to stand with them… Across the country, organizations like Interfaith are celebrating how organizations and residents work together to create opportunity and strengthen neighborhoods to build a better future for their neighbors.”

Rodriguez backed her praise with remarkable statistics regarding the fiscal responsibility and magnifying power of federal housing investments, pointing out that high-standard charter organizations like ICHDE cleanly maximize every dollar they receive.

• The 74-to-1 Leverage Power: Rodriguez revealed that the federal investment Congress authorizes through NeighborWorks leverages taxpayer dollars by an extraordinary ratio of 74 to 1 inside local neighborhoods.
• Seeding Local Wealth: Last year, NeighborWorks provided ICHDE with $198,000 through its core federal appropriation. Rather than sitting idle, that capital acted as a seed that generated nearly $47 million in local project investments across Delaware last year alone.
• A Historic Track Record: Over the past five years, ICHDE’s local expertise has successfully generated nearly $261 million of total direct investment in the First State, anchoring workforce stability and boosting local commercial vendors.

Looking forward to the construction phase, Rodriguez stated:

“We cannot wait to join you back here for the ribbon-cutting when the first families move into these homes, and see those children pick out their rooms. It will be an incredible day in Milford again.”

Local Economic Engines Demand Local Housing

Delaware Governor Matt Meyer injected practical math into the narrative, acknowledging that while 95 units are a fraction of the state’s broader 50,000-unit shortage:

“To those families, it means just about everything.”

He commended ICHDE’s agility, highlighting his administration’s push through Executive Order Eighteen to sprint through local zoning delays so future projects take 30 months instead of 30 years.

Milford Mayor F. Todd Culotta connected Lafayette Place directly to the city’s status as the fastest-growing community in Delaware. With a new corporate industrial park poised to bring 1,200 commercial jobs to the region, workforce proximity is critical. As reported by WBOC, Mayor Culotta noted:

“The great migration from New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, places like that have really contributed to our economy in a good way, but also put pressure on housing prices… Folks have to live somewhere, and we want them to live here. We want them to live comfortably, and we want them to be safe.”

Looking Forward: The Next 60 Years of Community Building

Lafayette Place represents a unified, multi-tiered effort. Supported by critical federal funds, driven by equity design grants from NALCAB, and guided by dedicated management capital from Enterprise Community Partners, this project serves as a model for central Delaware’s future.

With site infrastructure work commencing immediately, we look forward to the day when the first families walk through these doors, claim their spaces, and begin building intergenerational wealth. To our neighbors, our funders, and our future homeowners: thank you for stepping onto the platform with us.

For more information on housing counseling or to learn how you can prepare for homeownership at Lafayette Place, please contact the ICHDE HomeOwnership Center in Wilmington or Dover.

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Official Record: Lafayette Place Groundbreaking Ceremony

Date: Friday, May 29, 2026

Location: Colony South & Colony West Community Center, 250 Williamsburg Drive, Milford, DE 19963

Darlene Sample (Executive Director, ICHDE)

“Thank you for being here today as we gather for a moment of celebration, reflection, and purpose is truly a privilege. I am Darlene Sample, Executive Director of Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware. Before we begin, I want to take a moment to honor this land. Long before plans were drawn or construction began, this land carried history, resilience, and hope. Interfaith purchased this land in March of 1994, and for more than 30 years it has represented vision, perseverance, and commitment to our community.

“Today, we stand here not just to develop property, but to create opportunities, stability, and a brighter future for families. We are about to break ground on Lafayette Place, an affordable housing development that will create at least 36, and potentially up to 95 affordable homes for Delaware families. A project of this scale takes a village, and we at Interfaith are extremely grateful for the village represented in this room today.

“I would also like to thank the leaders who are here with us from the city, county, state, and federal levels. We are deeply honored as well to welcome our national funding partners, particularly Marietta Rodriguez, President and CEO of NeighborWorks America, as well as our partners from Enterprise Community Partners and the National Association of Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB). From our state and local leadership, thank you to Delaware Governor Matt Meyer, State Senator David Wilson, Kent County Administrator Kevin Sipple, City of Milford Mayor F. Todd Culotta, Planning Director Rob Pierce, City Manager Chris Coleman, and Charles Anderson, State Director of HUD.

“We also want to thank our fellow NeighborWorks America charter agency, NeighborGood Partners, and the Hispanic Association. I also want to recognize and thank the Interfaith team and our board of directors. This could not be possible without them. I have a great team, and I really want to say I appreciate all that you did in making this happen. So thank you to my team. I would also like to recognize the board members that could be here today: we have Joan Fitzgerald, Prea Epps, and Lisa Folks. Thank you so much for your support.

“None of this would be possible without our federal delegation. Together, Senator Chris Coons, Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester, and Representative Sarah McBride secured $68 million for 46 community projects across Delaware. And the good news for us is that $2.5 million of that funding came directly to Lafayette Place to help cover critical infrastructure costs such as roads, utilities, and site preparation.

“Anyone who has worked in development understands how difficult it can be to secure infrastructure funding. So we sincerely thank Senator Coons, Senator Blunt Rochester, and Representative Sarah McBride for this. Thank you for recognizing the importance of this project, believing in this project, and trusting in Interfaith to carry out this vision.

“Now it is my pleasure to introduce Catherine Davis, our Resource Development Director, whose leadership and dedication have helped bring this vision to life. Thank you so much, Catherine.”

Catherine Davis (Resource Development Director, ICHDE)

“I just want to say thank you to Cinnaire, who actually introduced us to Andrew Dinsmore on Senator Coons’ team, who started this whole thing. This Saturday marks my three-year anniversary with Interfaith. About a week into my job, Carlton Bowers, who is back there, he’s our housing development manager, came into my office with this really tattered bundle of pages right here. You know how much something is loved by how much it is handled, and this plan has been opened so many times over the last 20 years. Even before he said hello to me, he said, “Please find funding for this project.”

“I am so proud to say that because of our senators and because of our representative, this plan can now stay open. Not only that, but we can potentially grow this vision from the original idea of 36 homes to potentially 95, and I really do need to thank Architectural Alliance for helping us dream this.

“Interfaith has been doing this work since 1968, and that means more than 2,000 homes, and more than 19,000 families served. Everyone in this room knows what affordable housing can do for a family.

“Quiero decir algo rápidito en español: Queremos que estas casas abran las mismas puertas para todas las familias.

“We have so many powerful people in this room, and I love that we are starting this ceremony by listening to those voices, but ending where their work has the greatest impact, which is the community. So thank you for coming, and it is my pleasure and honor to welcome U.S. Senator Chris Coons.”

U.S. Senator Chris Coons

“Thank you, Catherine. Thank you, Darlene. And thank you to everybody whose vision is one big step closer to reality today. I just want to follow up with where you laid that out. This plan that’s been folded and unfolded, folded and unfolded, covers a site that hasn’t been developed for decades.

“Interfaith Community Housing is something that I got to know well when I was New Castle County Executive and worked on housing inclusion, housing affordability, and housing accessibility more than 16 years ago when I was in local government. I cannot think of a more important investment we make as a society than quality, affordable, safe, sanitary, decent housing. My first boss in a nonprofit dedicated to housing, Bob Hayes, used to say, “Housing is the platform on which everything else rests.” Do you want better families? They need stronger housing. Do you want better schools? They need better housing. Do you want a safer community and society? They need better housing. Do you want better public health? You need better housing. If housing isn’t stable, if housing isn’t affordable, if housing isn’t sanitary and decent, nothing else works.

“But if you give families and folks a floor to stand on, literally and figuratively, they can really make progress towards everything else. Housing, housing, housing. Senator Blunt Rochester and I are the dynamic duo of housing. She is the housing authorizer on the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. Give her a round of applause. And I’m a housing appropriator, so she’s the “mother, may I,” and I’m the “here’s how much.”

“To our governor, who understands and values housing as a former county executive himself, and someone who lived and worked in communities that gave him the vision to be dedicated to improving and delivering on housing. To folks like State Senator David Wilson, whom I am thrilled to have here, who fight hard for your community every day. To the mayor, Mayor Culotta, and the city manager. And to the remarkable partner who will speak soon after me, NeighborWorks America’s President and CEO, Marietta Rodriguez. Could we give an applause to everybody who made this moment possible?

“If you haven’t taken a moment and looked up and down this venue at what Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware has done for nearly 60 years, it’s worth taking a look at that record. Plans like this don’t turn into housing in the blink of an eye. They turn into housing after decades of hard work, of imagination, and of bringing a lot of partners together. They don’t thrive as high-quality communities without these kinds of support services that identify the right people who can and want to be parts of a community, give them pre-housing counseling and support, and then weave together families into a neighborhood. That’s the kind of hard, persistent, and determined work that Interfaith Community Housing and its partners do.

“‘Who is my neighbor?’ That’s a foundational question. It’s a question for our nation. It’s a question that goes back to the Gospel of Luke. Some of you may be familiar with the parable of the Good Samaritan. You may not know that the person who asks the question, “Who is my neighbor?” is a lawyer. A lawyer who, according to the passage, is trying to justify himself because he asks Jesus, “What must I do to achieve eternal life?” The Lord said, “Oh, well answered.” And then the lawyer says, “Wait a minute, wait a minute. Who’s my neighbor?”

“That’s a question we’re asking as a country today. Who’s in our circle of concern? Who do we actually care about? Who do we have responsibility for? Who will we view as, welcome as, and love as a neighbor? What you’re doing here is helping define that as broadly as it should be. Not saying, “This is a community we care about, this is a community we don’t care about,” but to instead broaden our circle of vision and engagement to open our hearts to all of our neighbors. When we have families who don’t have safe, sanitary, decent, affordable places to live, it hurts all of us. And when all of our families have a chance to afford and live in good quality housing, it enriches all of us.

“The answer to the question, “Who is my neighbor?” is something that’s challenged me and informed me my whole life. When I worked for the National Coalition for the Homeless in the mid-1980s, I saw homeless children in shelters in five states around our country—from Iowa to Georgia, from Michigan to New York—and it haunted me. How differently would my life have turned out if instead of having a whole lot of moves but always landing in secure housing, my family, as we went through tough times in the ’70s, had been homeless for a period of months or years? What difference does that make to a child’s confidence about the world, about adults, about safety, security, and stability?

“What you’re doing here is not just building houses or apartments. What you’re doing is building families and futures. So we should celebrate today that what we are working on together is to deliver for this $2.5 million investment. Because you’re doing so well with this project, Darlene, we were both honored to advance a request along with our congresswoman for $6.5 million in this year’s appropriations process. We can’t count our chickens before they hatch, but in our choices about where to invest federal dollars in our state and our communities this year, we have heavily prioritized housing—including $32 million in federal funding through community development grants. That’s because all of us see that housing is the foundation on which everything rests.

“Today we’ll be one shovel closer to this long-held dream fulfilled. We’ll be one shovel closer to the frames going up, and then 80 or more neighbors and families with a roof overhead and a future out front. I am so grateful to have played some small role in seeing this long-folded plan go out, go up, and go forward. Thank you all very much.

“If I don’t recognize Andrew Dinsmore, Kate, and Carter [Thompson] from my team—please wave, all three of you. If you don’t know Andrew Dinsmore, you should before you leave. Go get his card; he is delightfully, intensely persistent on connecting and helping build communities.

“Ladies and gentlemen, one of the blessings of my life is to serve in the United States Senate alongside Lisa Blunt Rochester. She is a joy, and you’re in for a treat. Ladies and gentlemen, our senator.”

U.S. Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester

“Wow. Thank you.

“First of all, I walked in through an absolute interfaith spirit entrance. Senator Coons just preached! I mean, literally, what is this? This is Interfaith.

“I am truly honored to be with you this morning. As Chris said, we get to serve with each other, and it’s really good to be home. It’s good to be able to work on something that we know will make a definitive difference in people’s lives, especially for such a time as this. Thank you, Darlene, for your leadership. To the entire Interfaith team, please give them a round of applause. To the board and the directors for your leadership, thank you so much. To all of the elected officials who are here today—our governor, mayor, senators—thank you to all of you who are here. Especially thank you to the community at large, because that’s really what this is about. It is about neighbors, community, and family.

“I am incredibly proud to be here at the groundbreaking of Lafayette Place on the 250th anniversary of our country, celebrating this milestone here in Milford. What we’ve learned already is that this didn’t just start yesterday. This goes back decades. The plan goes back decades, and the vision goes back decades. It took a village, as Darlene said, to make it a reality. While a lot has changed in these past decades, one thing that has remained completely constant is the mission. You kept your eyes on the prize. You didn’t give up. And so now all of these pieces come together for such a time as this.

“This is about transforming people’s lives and transforming community. As the senator said, it’s about making us safer and healthier, ensuring kids can go to school and not worry. That’s ultimately what this is about. For almost three decades, you’ve held the land, but we know that just like faith without works is dead, land without resources cannot develop. You can’t build the infrastructure, you can’t finalize the plans, and you can’t construct homes if you don’t have those resources.

“Senator Coons mentioned that I am the authorizer on the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, and we are working on major legislation. He called himself an appropriator, which means he is the money man—the funding flows through his work. Having that partnership for Delaware is incredibly powerful. Then, having a governor who gets it, a legislature who gets it, and mayors and county leaders who get it allows us to work in true partnership. I think about this place and how there will be children on the playground, seniors, and veterans who need housing who will have an opportunity here. That’s what this is all about.

“To give you a reality check: in our country right now, we are 4 to 7 million housing units short. In Delaware alone, we are 19,000 rental units short, 20,000 affordable housing units short, and 50,000 units short across all income levels. Housing was my number one priority when I got elected to the Senate. My very first bill was a housing bill, and we launched a comprehensive housing agenda called The New Way Home—a federal framework for housing—because it is what I heard from all of you: people simply cannot afford housing. They might work at the beach or at the local hospital, but they cannot afford to live anywhere near their workplace.

“Because I heard those stories from you, this has remained a number one priority. I am proud to give you hope that there is now bipartisan legislation moving forward. For the first time in decades, Democrats and Republicans have come together to put forward a package of bills to address our housing affordability crisis. We are navigating the legislative process to ensure these major bills clear both chambers. My hope and my prayer is that we are able to come together and serve as a bridge between the House and the Senate so that we can pass this legislation to build more homes, cut red tape, make the job you’re doing easier, and support working families. A lot of the provisions we designed into this legislation were learned directly from success stories right here in Delaware to share with the national landscape.

“This is deeply personal for me. As a kid, I remember living with my grandmothers for a while because my dad was working his way through college. He was the first in our family to graduate from high school and college. We lived in public housing in Philadelphia, then moved to Delaware into an apartment, and ultimately moved to 39th Street in Wilmington. Arlisa came up to me earlier and reminded me of 39th Street because she lived just a block away from my family. It was our first owned home, and as a 10-year-old, walking into that house and knowing it was ours did something profound to me. I lived on that street until I went to college, and later came back as an adult and bought a house at 311 West 39th Street. Later, as a single mom, I moved back to the same street to be next door to my parents. I know firsthand that housing is foundational for a family’s safety and security.

“As a congresswoman, I once visited a town hall with second graders, and a child raised his hand and asked, “Do you work on housing?” I said, “Yes, I do.” He said, “Good, because my friend lives in his car.” That moment stuck with me forever. We know that this is truly about families, about strong communities, and about our health, our education, and our wealth. Building generational wealth is structurally connected to homeownership.

“It is incredibly fitting that this development is named Lafayette Place. Lafayette was a statesman, a soldier, and a friend of liberty, and he had a famous personal motto: “Pourquoi pas?”—Why not?

“Why not? Shouldn’t every child in this country live in a safe home? Why not? Shouldn’t everybody who has a job know that they don’t have to work five jobs just to afford an apartment? Why not? Shouldn’t each of us be a part of the American community as a true neighbor? Why not?

“Well, guess what? There’s no “why not” here because we are actively doing it. We are breaking ground today. No more why nots.

“It is now my opportunity to introduce a leader who is helping get this done across all three counties. Ladies and gentlemen, the Governor of the great state of Delaware, Matt Meyer.”

Governor Matt Meyer

“Let’s hear it again for Lisa and Chris. For those of you visiting from outside of Delaware, I have to tell you: your senators aren’t as good as our senators!

“It’s a great day, and it is truly an honor to be here. For those visiting from outside Milford, I’ve been down here quite a bit over the last month, and I can tell you this beautiful weather is exactly like this in Milford every single day. Here in Kent County, we say you are guaranteed to either be in the best county in America or right next to it.

“It is truly an honor to be here with our senators, and with State Senator David Wilson—the best auctioneer in the state of Delaware. If you have any trouble selling or renting these homes, David will get up in front of the crowd and get them moved in a moment. Thank you, Senator Wilson, for your continued support. And to Mayor Todd Culotta, thank you so much. Walking in, I saw Robbin Black and asked her how long this project had been in the works. She told me it has been about 30 years. It has taken an immense amount of work: locally envisioned, state and locally executed, with tremendous and critical federal support.

“That federal support is making a difference across our entire state. Every round of congressionally directed spending we see these days in Delaware includes significant, multi-million-dollar support for affordable housing. This focus makes perfect sense because we have a housing crisis in our community. We shouldn’t sugarcoat it. Lisa gave some of the critical numbers: millions of affordable units needed across our country, and 20,000 right here in Delaware alone. You might pause to think, what difference does a single project make against a state-level need of 20,000 units? As a former math teacher, I can tell you exactly what it means: to the families moving into these modern homes, it means absolutely everything.

“Twelve years ago, I was a public school math teacher in Wilmington. I learned very quickly that when you stand in front of a classroom today, there are a lot of external factors you have to worry about. I’d be hard-pressed to name a single student I taught who thrived academically who did not have safe, stable, affordable housing. Our housing stock is under pressure, partly because Delaware is the only state in the Mid-Atlantic adding population as people actively move into our state. We have an exceptional quality of life, beautiful communities, and an affordable cost of living that attracts people. While we should be proud of that growth, it creates infrastructure pressures for Mayor Culotta and the City of Milford. These are serious challenges that we as elected officials and community partners must address together.

“It is wonderful that at Interfaith Community Housing, we have organizations and individuals who selflessly raise their hands and say, “Let’s fix this.” Let’s do the hard work to deliver results. People often say it takes a village to raise a child, but I’ve learned it also takes a lot of zoning meetings, complex financing spreadsheets, and a lot of sweat equity to get through the hard moments. Getting to today’s groundbreaking is a massive administrative achievement. It’s easy to stand up and speak about a housing crisis, but actually executing the solution is challenging. While many communities across our country are moving backwards, we are vowing to move forward quicker than ever.

“Three months ago, I signed Executive Order Eighteen. The core purpose of this executive order is to streamline state processes so that vital residential projects like this do not take decades to navigate. We in government need to sprint. When community organizations present a viable vision to address our housing needs, we cannot let the minutiae of government bureaucracy stand in the way or delay construction.

“Too often, intergovernmental or inter-agency disagreements over obscure regulations cause long delays, and it is the families who need safe, secure, stable housing who suffer. We are breaking through those bottlenecks. I am excited to introduce our next speaker, someone who began her journey in affordable housing decades ago in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and has risen through the ranks to become one of the leading national experts in affordable housing deployment. Let’s give a warm Milford welcome to the President and CEO of NeighborWorks America, Marietta Rodriguez.”

Marietta Rodriguez (President & CEO, NeighborWorks America)

“Good morning. It’s a privilege and a deep pleasure to be with you today in Milford. Across the country, this week is nationally designated as NeighborWorks Week, and I am happy to celebrate it right here with you. This week, organizations across our national network are celebrating how community leaders, nonprofits, and local residents work together to expand opportunity and strengthen neighborhoods.

“On behalf of NeighborWorks America, congratulations to Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware, the City of Milford, and every partner involved. This project isn’t just bringing much-needed quality housing to Kent County; it is creating a direct pathway to permanent homeownership. At NeighborWorks, we believe that when individuals and families have access to affordable housing, they gain the platform they need to truly thrive. We envision a nation where every community, regardless of income or age, can live, work, and learn with absolute peace of mind. Everyone deserves that opportunity, and that is the exact reality that Interfaith is creating right here.

“The care and dedication that Interfaith has shown to this community, their hard-working staff, and their board are evident in everything they touch. Look at this neighborhood. When people historically think about affordable housing, they don’t always picture beautiful trees, integrated playgrounds, and modern infrastructure. This is an incredible standard, and we are proud to stand with them.

“This work does not happen in a vacuum. I want to extend our deepest gratitude to Senator Coons, Senator Blunt Rochester, and the Governor. They have been unwavering champions for both NeighborWorks America and Interfaith, and their legislative support makes this local impact possible. NeighborWorks is a congressionally chartered and funded organization with the sole mission of providing affordable homes and strengthening communities. The federal investment Congress authorizes through our appropriation leverages taxpayer dollars by an extraordinary ratio of 74 to 1. For every dollar we receive, our network leverages it 74 times over inside local communities. Over the last five years alone, Interfaith has generated nearly $261 million of direct investment in the state of Delaware, creating jobs, supporting local businesses, building homes, and reimagining community assets.

“Last year, NeighborWorks provided Interfaith with $198,000 through our core federal appropriation. That funding acted as a critical seed that grew to nearly $47 million in total local project investment last year alone. In addition to financial support, NeighborWorks offers advanced professional training and technical assistance to a network of nearly 250 local organizations across the country. High-standard organizations like Interfaith have their finger on the pulse of the community. Breaking ground today is possible because we have made a sustained investment in the capacity and infrastructure of this organization.

“We are thrilled that Lafayette Place is moving forward to bring at least 36 affordable homes to the families of Kent County. Thank you to the City of Milford, Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware, the Governor, the Senators, and all your partners. Together, we are literally building a stronger America. Congratulations to the entire team. We are inspired by your work and cannot wait to join you back here for the ribbon-cutting when the first families move into these homes.

“It is now my distinct honor to introduce Mayor F. Todd Culotta of the City of Milford. He is a dedicated public servant and a business professional with deep roots in this community who understands exactly how critical economic investment is to structural community growth. Mayor Culotta.”

Mayor F. Todd Culotta (City of Milford)

“Thank you for coming today. My name is Mayor Todd Culotta. When I received the schedule for today, I thought, “Wow, they put the local mayor right at the end!” But that’s perfectly fine with me.

“Thank you for coming down to our community, Senators. We really appreciate your leadership. Thank you for coming, Governor; anytime you are in Milford, I will be here to join you in pushing for progress. Just a few weeks ago, the Governor was here to sign an executive order to make our local business and construction processes more fluid, and that is extremely important to me. I am a general contractor by trade, working in both commercial and residential construction, so I understand exactly what it costs to build physical infrastructure. As a mayor and a former city council member, I also appreciate the administrative difficulties of getting projects through the regulatory pipeline.

“Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend our local high school graduation here in Milford. We watched 330 graduates walk across the stage to enter the workforce, higher education, and the military. I think about those 330 young people entering our community: they are going to need modern housing, and they are going to need to be able to afford it. There is nothing worse than graduating, entering the workforce, and struggling to find a place to live, because housing access directly determines where you can work and what kind of career you can build for yourself. It is vital that we work across all levels of government to provide that stability. As I always say: if the federal and state governments are willing to write a check for Milford, I am fully ready to help you spend it efficiently.

“I make the firm commitment to you today that the City of Milford will continue to make our development and permitting processes as streamlined and fluid as possible. Watching those graduates last night, it struck me that I graduated on that exact same high school field 35 years ago. Reflecting on the fact that this project has been 30 years in the making makes you truly appreciate the immense long-term effort required by the Interfaith team. To the Governor’s point: let’s make the next phases take 30 months, not 30 years.

“Adding housing at all inventory levels helps the entire community by stabilizing supply and demand. Milford is the fastest-growing community in Delaware. We are rapidly becoming a major hub for healthcare, manufacturing, and industry. Our new industrial park alone is projected to bring 1,200 new jobs to the city. Those working families have to live somewhere, and we want them to live comfortably and safely right here in Milford.

“On a personal note, my wife and I have a six-year-old and a three-year-old boy whom we adopted out of the Delaware foster care system when they were very young. Through that experience, I have seen the difficult reality of what a lack of stable housing does to a child’s future. I am completely dedicated to ensuring we provide a strong, stable foundation for the next generation. We will do everything in our power to support Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware. The key word in their name is faith—and we have absolute faith that by working together, this project will be an outstanding success. Welcome to Milford, and thank you for your investment in our city.”