Community Services League is building affordable homes and training new construction workers

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In Independence, a program is building more than affordable homes — it is creating new opportunities for families and young workers from the ground up.

Through Community Services League's (CSL) affordable housing initiative, new homes are taking going up across Independence. The goal is to give families an affordable path to owning their own home while providing stability that extends far beyond the walls of a house.

Will Shaw

Donna Bradford is the director of affordable housing for CSL.

The houses are three-bedroom homes, have two full baths and are 1,240 square feet.

Bradford said stable housing has a ripple effect on families and their communities.

"They become members of the community, they participate, children do better in school because they have stable housing," she told KSHB 41 News Kansas City and crime solutions reporter La'Nita Brooks.

The homes are built using SIP panels, a construction method general contractor Daniel Speigle said is more cost-efficient and easier to replicate.

Will Shaw

"A great method to build homes affordably, efficiently — also because we can minimize labor used and we can train individuals to repeat the process," Speigle said.

The project also works with local high school construction trade students, giving them hands-on experience across every phase of building a house.

"They see the whole picture, like our students here, they actually firm the driveway to the foundation, they set up the concrete forms," Speigle said. "They're going to set the rebar. They actually do the floor with us — the finishing."

For former student Jarell Spires, that opportunity turned into a full-time career.

Will Shaw

"I've learned a lot," Spires said. "Like, we've done concrete, we've done flooring, roofing, all that."

Spires said the work carries meaning beyond the paycheck.

"We know these families are getting nice houses," he said. "We're putting our best work into them and we're also learning as we go."

Community Services League has built five homes so far through the initiative. The program also helps families with credit repair and financial assistance.

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