Tickets are still available to attend the banquet for the seventh annual Milwaukee Awards for Neighborhood Development Innovation (MANDI).
The finalists for this year’s MANDIs have been announced by Raejean Kanter, acting executive director of the Potawatomi Community Foundation. The awards, which are presented by the Local Initiatives Support Corp. (LISC) in Milwaukee, honor nonprofit community groups and their partners involved in revitalizing the city’s neighborhoods. Kanter chaired the independent selection committee that reviewed 38 nominations for awards in five major categories. The finalists are:
- Navigator Award for exemplary leadership in neighborhood development: Rob Lemke, president of Wisconsin Redevelopment LLC; Richard Oulahan, former executive director of Esperanza Unida Inc.; and Brian Reilly, manager of Menomonee Valley Redevelopment and Milwaukee Economic Development Corp.
- Vision Award for strong commitment and leadership: Annie E. Casey Foundation; Milwaukee Partnership for Community Development; and State Farm Insurance Cos.
- Trailblazer Award for new approaches to old problems: the Associates in Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) program of the Marquette University School of Business; the Homeownership Voucher Program of the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee; and School for Resident Leaders of Making Connections Milwaukee.
- Cornerstone Award for outstanding innovation and perseverance: Milwaukee Christian Center’s Neighborhood Improvement Program; Mother Kathryn Daniels Conference Center; and Select Milwaukee Inc.
- State Farm Insurance Building Blocks Award for outstanding real estate development (large project): Ambassador Hotel, developed by Wiegand Enterprises; Milwaukee Public Market, developed by the Public Market Task Force; and Teweles Seed Tower Apartments (developed by Common Bond Communities).
- State Farm Insurance Building Blocks Award for outstanding real estate development (small project): Wisconsin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce headquarters, developed by the chamber; King Drive Commons, developed by Martin Luther King Economic Development Corp.; Leon Sullivan Town Homes, developed by the Inner City Redevelopment Corp.
The MANDI program is financially supported by Chase, Helen Bader Foundation, Marshall & Ilsley Bank, National Equity Fund, Northern Trust Bank, Northwestern Mutual, State Farm Insurance Company and Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Corporation. Small Business Times is the media sponsor for the program.
Tickets for the event, which are $15, and additional information are available by calling Leo Ries, LISC program director, at (414) 273-1815 by March 9.
