Who's behind this website?
Who created this website?
The creation of Front Door was a collaboration between The Lab @ DC and the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) along with 14 District agencies, several local partners, and, of course, you, District residents. Here, we’d like to recognize their immense contributions (in alphabetical order):
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DC government and local partner staff: These are the people who run, day-in and day-out, the 50+ resources you can find on Front Door. The DC government and local partners listed below have mapped out the resident experience for each resource, provided feedback on the resource pages, identified potential pitfalls, recruited their colleagues and clients to test forms and the website, advised on the web build, and coordinated the translation of the site into six languages. ​​
Who maintains this website?
The DC Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, in coordination with the 11 District agencies who run the resources on Front Door, maintains the site. Each resource page lists the last date it was updated at the bottom. As new resources are created and as eligibility criteria, benefits, and application processes change, you can expect to see the new information on Front Door, thanks to the work of DMPED.
This page was last updated November 2021.
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Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development: DMPED contributed their expertise in the landscape of homeownership programs and the challenges in housing affordability in DC. We’d like to recognize the contributions of current and past staff at DMPED who helped develop the project plan, coordinate between the many agencies involved in the project, and come up with prototypes of the website.
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The Lab @ DC: The Lab @ DC led the development of Front Door. We’d like to recognize the current and past staff at The Lab who talked to government partners, local nonprofits, and residents to understand how these services are provided and mapping the process from start to finish. They drafted the plain language content and step-by-step instructions you see here on the website, redesigned forms, tested everything with users, built the website, and tested again. And again.
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You, DC residents, and other users: As of September 2021, more than 160 people tested Front Door and the forms we redesigned as part of the project. You tested in-person (pre-COVID) at local nonprofits where you were seeking the resources featured on Front Door, you joined us on video calls after receiving services from our government partners, you were compensated to test the website through usertesting.com, and you volunteered to test the beta version of the website. You are current or future homeowners, young, old, new to DC, and native Washingtonians. You use screen-readers, experience color-blindness, and speak English as a second language. Please, keep sending us your feedback.
DC government:
​Local partners: