Affordable Housing Advocate
Rick Preston knows what it’s like to have someone lend a helping hand. As a young man trying to figure out his path, his father offered him free housing in Flagstaff so that he could pursue a degree at Northern Arizona University. Preston, who is half Hopi and half Yavapai-Apache, also received assistance to finance his education from members of the Yavapai-Apache Nation. And, when it came time to put his degree in construction management to use, Preston received his first job offer from the Yavapai-Apache Nation. Preston accepted that offer as a way to help those who had helped him.
"I was always mindful of the fact that the Yavapai-Apache Nation put me through college all these years, so I wanted to go back and work for them," he says. " I started as a building inspector, moved up to operations manager, and now I'm the executive director for the housing program there."
As Executive Director of Yavapai-Apache Tribal Housing in
Camp Verde, Arizona, Preston has had important impacts both on the program and
on the community it serves. When he first arrived, for instance, Preston
introduced drafting software to an office that was still using pencils and
triangles as primary drafting tools. Now, Preston diligently works to build
quality houses for low-income tribal families within the boundaries of the
Yavapai-Apache Nation. According to Preston, the home-building effort has been
a hit.
"The people who move into the homes love them,"
he says. "In fact, due to the quality of homes, the waiting list has
actually doubled. We've also given tours to various organizations and people
from the other tribes —everyone likes the quality of the homes."
Creating
incentives
In an effort to meet the rising demand for affordable
homes among citizens of the Yavapai-Apache Nation, Preston and his team have
turned to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, which is a federal tax incentive
to encourage private investors to finance housing developments. According to
Preston, this program allows Yavapai-Apache Tribal Housing to continue
assisting those they want to serve.. And, he says, their work hasn't gone
unnoticed.
"We've actually received multiple awards from the
Arizona Department of Housing for our participation in the Low-Income Housing
Tax Credit program," says Preston. "Participating in the program
helps keep costs down for individuals who don't have a lot of money to spend on
utilities. Resources aren't getting any cheaper, so what we're trying to do is
help out the tenants in that way."
Staying connected
to the university
Preston is also thankful for the help he has received as
a member of the Northern Arizona University
community. He credits his construction management professors for helping him
earn his degree, and feels that his time on campus prepared him well for what
was to come.
"In terms of helping me interact with architects or
bigger construction firms, I had a strong knowledge of the industry so I was
able to be prepared, instead of going in blind," he says. "Afterward,
I was also able to use my professors as resources on various things. It was
great having [professors] remember [me]. If you go to a different university,
unless you really stand out or make yourself known, you might not be
remembered."
Preston is determined to continue his personal and
professional growth with the help of Northern Arizona University; he is currently pursuing a master's degree in
construction management. He is also pushing forward with an effort to bring
solar homes to the Yavapai-Apache Nation—if he can get utility costs lower, he
says, it will benefit tribal members.
"Overall, we're providing quality, safe, and
sanitary housing for our tribal members at very low cost," he says.
"At the same time, we're also giving them the benefit of lower utility
bills. I think it's a good thing."