News Release – May 14, 2007

Governor Announces Opening of 2007 DREAM Initiative

Communities Can Apply for Assistance with Downtown Revitalization

JEFFERSON CITY- Gov. Matt Blunt today announced the opening of the 2007 Downtown Revitalization and Economic Assistance for Missouri (DREAM) initiative. Blunt created the initiative as an opportunity to revitalize the once prosperous and still promising downtown areas of many Missouri communities in the coming years.

"The first year of our DREAM initiative was a tremendous success," Blunt said. "The Missouri communities that were selected are all much closer to making their dreams of downtown revitalization come true. I strongly encourage Missouri community leaders to apply for assistance in helping revitalize their downtown regions to help create jobs and enhance opportunities for their fellow citizens."

Blunt launched the DREAM initiative last year to help small and mid-sized Missouri communities navigate through the various downtown revitalization, business development and residential resources available through state government. The Missouri Department of Economic Development (DED) is the lead agency in the effort and works closely with the Missouri Housing Development Commission and the Missouri Development Finance Board to provide close assistance to the selected communities.

Applications will be due by 5:00 p.m. on July 6, 2007 and may be obtained through the DREAM Internet site, www.dream.mo.gov. There will be two applications available, one for previous applicants who were not selected as part of the first ten and a second for first time applicants. Blunt will announce the 2007 DREAM communities at the Governor's Conference on Economic Development in August.

Last year, Blunt announced the first annual DREAM designees: Cape Girardeau, Excelsior Springs, Hannibal, Hermann, Kennett, Neosho, Sedalia, St. Joseph, Washington and West Plains.

As governor, Blunt has made strengthening Missouri's economy a top priority. In his first year in office he lead the successful efforts to enact real lawsuit workers' compensation reforms that combined with new economic programs like his Quality Jobs Act have helped employers and entrepreneurs create 93,300 new jobs since January 2005.

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MHDC is the state's housing finance agency. The Commission is dedicated to strengthening communities and the lives of Missourians through the financing, development and preservation of affordable housing. Since 1969, MHDC has encouraged and assisted in the production of affordable rental housing and provided homeownership opportunities for thousands of families while investing almost $4 billion in Missouri housing for rental housing developments, home mortgages, home improvement loans, loans to landlords for renovations, grants to neighborhood housing groups and other programs.  MHDC does not build or renovate housing itself; rather, it functions as a bank, providing financing directly to borrowers or through a network of private lending institutions. Most of MHDC's programs operate as a public-private partnership.