“We crafted a meticulous application in 2005, and painstakingly assembled the completed document, reviewing each and every page in the process,” Garret said.

The LBHA submitted the completed application to HUD, only to receive another letter of rejection, this time on the grounds that the application was incomplete. Knowing this to be not the case, Garrett immediately phoned the HUD office in Washington, D.C. After an exchange of phone calls and letters, and with assistance from Congressman Frank Pallone, Senator Frank Lautenberg, Governor Jon Corzine, and Mayor Adam Schneider, HUD reversed itself and awarded LBHA the $20 million HOPE VI Grant.

“What makes this grant award so gratifying, is the fact that the entire Agency, especially Tyrone, refused to take no for an answer," said Randy Phillips, Assistant Executive Director. "The residents of the LBHA have no idea how really important this HOPE VI Grant is going to be in the larger scheme of turning this community around.”

“The fact that LBHA received a HOPE VI Grant award in 2005, says a great deal about where this organization is headed,” Garrett said. “In reality, this HOPE VI Grant expands the Long Branch Housing Authority’s Three-Phase Master Plan into a four-phase plan and now includes the Garfield Court Complex for a total of 244 new townhouses, 26 of which will be for Homeownership. Also now scheduled for construction are an Administration Building and Maintenance Headquarters."