Making People Care
 The
Challenge: Investors in a privately financed single-room-occupancy
hotel providing low-income housing wanted to refinance the project
in order to invest in other, similar ventures. But they quickly
found that most financing for low-income housing was available only
to nonprofit or publicly funded groups.
The Solution: MCA decided to focus
on the Ridge Hotel's unusual "clean and sober" policy,
which required residents to sign a pledge that they would not use
alcohol or illegal drugs on the premises.
A news release was timed to coincide with
Thanksgiving Day, when news media are looking for "good news"
stories. This resulted in television coverage of the residents'
holiday dinner, and led to other news stories focused on the success
of the project. The Oakland Tribune trumpeted the need for changes
in financial regulations for hotels like the Ridge.
Results: The Ridge developed a waiting
list of renters, and the investors were able to obtain refinancing.
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