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ATTENTION: EDITORS / ASSIGNMENT EDITORS

Contact:

Joan Fultz, West End Neighborhood House, 302-658-4171
John Rago, Office of Mayor James Baker, 302-420-7928 (cell)
Emily Cunningham, communications, U.S. Sen. Thomas Carper, 302-573-6457

U.S. SEN. CARPER, LT. GOV. CARNEY, WILMINGTON MAYOR BAKER TO ATTEND OCT. 17 BROWNFIELD EVENT SETTING THE STAGE FOR DOWNTOWN MIXED-INCOME HOUSING

WILMINGTON, DE, October 10, 2006 — U.S. Sen. Thomas R. Carper (DE), Lt. Governor John C. Carney Jr., Wilmington Mayor James M. Baker and New Castle County Executive Christopher Coons will lead an assemblage of affordable housing and community revitalization advocates from government, business and area nonprofits Tuesday, October 17, at 10 a.m. to break ground for Speakman Place, a mixed-income housing development being built on the site of the former Speakman Company manufacturing plant at 30th and North Spruce streets in Downtown Wilmington.

Forgoing the customary shovel-turning, celebrants will send aloft approximately two dozen balloons from the vacant factory's rooftop. The attractive three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath residences at Speakman Place will feature views of the downtown skyline and Delaware Memorial Bridge. Half of all units in Speakman Place are earmarked for residents earning less than 80 percent of the area median income.

Sponsored by Cornerstone West Community Development Corporation and Ingerman Group, a Cherry Hill, NJ developer, Speakman Place is being financed by the Delaware State Housing Authority's Housing Development Fund, the HOME Investment Partnerships Program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and area commercial banks.

Speakman Place will sit atop a brownfield site once occupied by the Speakman Company, an internationally known plumbing fittings manufacturer known for its shower heads. The company is still in operation, with headquarters near New Castle, DE. The planned mixed-income neighborhood represents just the latest phase in Downtown Wilmington's ongoing revitalization.

Additional information about the project, partners and how prospective homebuyers can qualify for low-interest mortgages and down payment and closing cost grants will be shared during the event. Renderings of Speakman Place will also be on display.

Directions from Downtown Philadelphia:

Proceed down North 7th Street/North Franklin Street and take the I-95 ramp. Merge onto I-95 South toward Chester/Philadelphia International Airport. Merge onto the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Highway (I-495 South) via Exit 11 toward the Port of Wilmington. Take the US-13 Gov. Printz Boulevard exit (Exit 4A) toward State Route 3/Edgemoor Road North. Turn left onto Gov. Printz Boulevard/US-13 South. Continue following 13 South. Turn right onto East 30th Street. End at East 30th and North Spruce streets.