Habitat for Humanity of the River Valley broke ground Saturday, June 22, for construction for a new home on Browns Ferry Road, unofficially marking the nonprofit organization’s return to the Athens-Limestone County area after a tumultuous exit nearly ten years ago.

After serving the Athens-Limestone County community for more than 25 years, the local Habitat for Humanity chapter dissolved in 2017 following former executive director Greg Miller’s indictment on one count of first-degree theft and one count of second-degree forgery.

Miller was accused of stealing $107,554 from the nonprofit from 2011 through 2014 — taking out bank loans as the executive director for personal expenses, such as the purchase of a Gulf Shores condominium.

On Monday, July 22, Jeremy Foulks, executive director at Habitat for Humanity of the River Valley, spoke to the Athens City Council about the organization’s future and the “serious need” for cheaper housing options in the area.

“We have a serious need for safe and affordable housing in this community,” Foulks said. “As this area grows we have seen rent prices increase significantly to around $1,200 a month. Through Habitat we can get a family into a safe, stable home at $600 a month on mortgage, but we can only do that if this community comes together to help support this.”

Foulks gave a presentation to the council during its work session on Monday, looking to cultivate and build a new partnership with the city officials of Athens.

“We have some great relationships with other municipalities, and we’d like to start a similar relationship here with the Athens City Council,” Foulks told The News Courier. “We want to have open communication with the planning departments, the mayor’s office and the city council about the things we can do to better serve this community.”

Athens Mayor Ronnie Marks, who was present at the groundbreaking ceremony in June, spoke to The News Courier after the council meeting about the prospect of having Habitat for Humanity back in Athens.

“It has been troubling to me to see the cost of construction these days, with how hard it is to find affordable housing anywhere,” Marks said. “Habitat is a great ministry, with excellent services, so we need to stand ready to help them and support them.”

During his presentation, Foulks stated that they are in the process of setting up future projects, such as a local Habitat for Humanity board, mentioning Limestone County Economic Development Association President Bethany Shockney as the new board president.

“I’m looking forward to helping them get the word out that we need volunteer groups to support any activities that we do have,” Shockney said. “There are plans to have another Habitat ReStore in Athens again at some point. We already have two more families that have been approved for homes in Athens, but another thing we are looking forward to is a home repair program that could possibly help people who don’t have the funds.”

During his presentation to the council, Foulks answered multiple questions from District 2 Councilman Harold Wales, who was hesitant to jump into any partnership or agreement with the nonprofit organization after the exit in the past.

“I’m sure that the need is there, but I’m a little leery about that without knowing as much about the facts as I can,” Wales said. “I also want to be careful that whoever gets the houses fulfills a need there. But, my main concern is to make sure that the problems they had several years ago no longer exist.”

Wales explained that he wants to make sure everything is remedied prior to supporting a partnership with Habitat for Humanity to ensure that the people’s money in the city of Athens is being used responsibly.

“I say this all the time, the money that we have in the city is not ours, it’s our taxpayers,” Wales said. “I have been hired and elected to make sure that I stay on top of that, and I try to always do the right thing with the taxpayers money.”