City, Habitat for Humanity launch Rock the Block program in De Pere

The City of De Pere held a press conference at City Hall on March 20 with Habitat for Humanity to announce the launch of a brand-new initiative here in our community, Rock the Block! A neighborhood revitalization effort will occur in east De Pere for the first-ever, week-long, volunteer-driven event in September 2024. This could provide exterior home rehab services like porch repair, siding, roofing, and landscaping.

From there, Rock the Block will return to De Pere in a west-side neighborhood in 2026!

This first Rock the Block project area lies immediately east of City Hall and the new Mulva Cultural Center, extending Ontario St and Washington St, George St to the north, and Merrill St to the south. Within this area, 170 owner-occupied homes stand as the backbone of our community, but have a median construction year of 1984 and 21% of housing units predating 1950.

For more info on Rock the Block, please visit https://loom.ly/HNYzLig to learn about this new endeavor and how you can be a part of it! Habitat for Humanity and the City of De Pere are now starting outreach to prospective homeowners to participate. The application program will continue for the next three months.  

Beyond this partnership, the City of De Pere, like other cities in the state, is striving to create numerous ways to meet the needs of its residents with affordable housing and workforce housing options – and we have more exciting program announcements soon to come! Stay tuned.