Neighborhoods


Strategic Neighborhood Transformation

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Monday, September 21st

On Saturday, September 19th, volunteers from Tabernacle Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Victory Christian Center, and the Mahoning Valley Young Professionals worked to construct street furniture for the Mahoning Avenue Better Block, which will take place on Saturday, September 26th.

Volunteers made benches, coffee tables, bike racks, art display boards, signs, and a book shelf out of donated wooden pallets. These items will be used in the pop-up cafe and art galleries at the Better Block. For more information about the Better Block, check out the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1650174195224550

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Hundreds of empty houses have been torn down in Youngstown, all in an effort to fight blight.



However, all that demolition is creating a new issue for residents.

Atkinson, Dudley and Vittorio are just a few of the streets in Youngstown that are falling into disrepair. People dump piles of garbage on the streets, and potholes are starting to pop up.

It’s leading the city to talk about abandoning the roads altogether.

“Physically we would just put barriers up right now. Eventually nature would take over, and some of it has started actually,” Youngstown Public Works Director Chuck Shasho said.

It’s not an overnight process. Besides making sure water mains and electric grids are still connected, there would be a legal process to abandoning the roads completely.

“We would have to go through a petition to vacate and the city would give up the right of way to the adjoining property owners,” Shasho said.

At least one councilwoman likes the idea.

“As long as nobody is living there, or has to move out of of their house,”  First Ward Councilwoman Annie Gillam said.

John Horvath lives in the last house on his street. By his estimation, he’s got 40 acres of vacant land beyond.

“I think that’s a good idea. It’s better than us trying to have the street department come and clean it up, because they do,” Horvath said.

To view the full coverage, click here.
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Phil Kidd, associate director of Youngstown Cityscape, founder of Defend Youngstown, and business owner of the Youngstown Nation store in downtown Youngstown, is the featured speaker at the Brownlee Woods Neighborhood Association meeting Thursday at Faith Community Church, 1919 E. Midlothian Blvd.



Refreshments and social time will begin at 6 p.m., and a business meeting will follow at 6:30. The session is open to all city residents.

Kidd will speak about the revitalization of downtown. Information on neighborhood happenings also will be provided to Brownlee Woods residents. Phil Skowron, community police officer, will also visit to discuss neighborhood issues.

The association also will discuss plans for its fall car show, “Dress Up Your Car,” and trunk-or-treat event from 2 to 5 p.m. Oct. 25 in the church parking lot.

The group also will participate in Midlothian Boulevard Better Block event from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 25 organized by Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp.

Food, fun and entertainment will be offered on the 1900 block of Midlothian Boulevard between Sheridan Road and Irma Street.

 

To read the full story at Vindy.com, click here.

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University of Michigan and other schools and organizations are using a $6 million federal grant to continue studying the effects of improving blighted neighborhoods on reducing violence.

The Ann Arbor school said Friday the five-year grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention supports work being done in Flint, Michigan, Youngstown, Ohio, and Camden, New Jersey. Collaborators include the University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University and many local health and community development groups.

Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center leaders say blight and neglect have contributed to rising levels of violence. The work focuses on engaging residents, particularly youth, in caring for vacant and empty lots.

Center director Marc Zimmerman says research shows getting youth working on community-improvement projects has proven more effective than many efforts to improve their behavior.

To view the full coverage, click here.
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Wednesday, September 23, 2015

On Tuesday, September 22nd, YNDC held the first in the fall series of Bright Idea to Business Plan classes. Over 30 people crowded the Cultivate Cafe space on Elm Street in Youngstown to learn how to start a small business.

Speakers at the first class included Stephanie Gilchrist of the Youngstown Business Incubator and Danny Catullo of Catullo Prime Meats. The classes will run until November 3rd. Anyone interested in attending future classes or generally starting a small business in Youngstown should contact Liberty Merrill at 330.480.0423.

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Wednesday, September 23, 2015

YNDC recently partnered with the Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center on a grant to study how improving vacant properties in three U.S. cities affects violence, property crimes and intentional injuries among youth. The project, which involves work in Youngstown, Flint, and Camden, was awarded $6 million from the Centers for Disease Control.

In Youngstown, funds will be spent to improve and maintain 150 new lots and study the effects of vacant land reuse projects involving youth on urban neighborhoods. Funding to Youngstown will surpass $200,000 of the $6 million budget. The five-year grant will fund the collaborative effort involving the U-M School of Public Health, U-M Medical School, University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University, Genesee County Land Bank in Flint, Cooper's Ferry Partnership in Camden, Center for Community Progress, economic development organizations, health departments, hospitals, police departments and community-based organizations in each city.

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Hundreds of volunteers made the Day of Caring a rousing, singular success.

Our mission at the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley is to be the catalyst and driving force for collaborative, sustainable community impact.

On Sept. 4, I believe we fulfilled our mission at our 18th Annual Day of Caring.

We want to sincerely thank the hundreds of people who helped make it all possible. When we first started planning the volunteer event, we were worried because it fell on Labor Day weekend. But that did not stop the nearly 700 volunteers from coming out in full force to make a positive impact in our community.

Our staff spent months planning for this day. We worked closely with the city of Youngstown, Green Youngstown, the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp., the American Red Cross, and Lowe’s. We got great support from two title sponsors: Huntington Bank and Hometown Pharmacy.

But what really makes this day special is seeing the men, women, students and children from 54 companies, organizations, nonprofits and unions come together to serve their neighbors in need.

More than 400 people went to the Cottage Grove neighborhood on Youngstown’s South Side. They cleaned and boarded up 75 abandoned homes.

Even though dirt and sweat covered the volunteers orange Day of Caring T-shirts, they still beamed with pride as they looked up and down the streets that they helped transform. The smiles and feelings of accomplishment could be seen on the faces of a few hundred more volunteers who went to 16 of our partner agencies.

The United Way of Youngs-town and the Mahoning Valley cannot do this work alone. We have a small staff with big hearts, but we also have hundreds of people who believe in what we are trying to accomplish.

Bob Hannon, Youngstown

Bob Hannon is president of the United Way of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley.

To read the full story at Vindy.com, click here.

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Wedensday, September 23, 2015

On Wednesday, September 23rd, an AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) Team, Cedar Two arrived in Youngstown to spend the next six weeks working with YNDC on neighborhood improvement projects.

The team will begin work assisting with better block projects and then transition to vacant home board ups and clean outs. The team is composed of young people age 18 to 24 from across the United States. The team includes: Spencer Liechity, Carson Smith-Saunders, Elizabeth Munyan, Jean Laney, Joye Bowen, Mike McCaslin, Regan Naughton, Shane Sandoval, and Sylas Walker. We welcome them and are grateful for their service to YNDC and Youngstown.

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Wednesday, October 23, 2015

On Wednesday, October 23rd, YNDC Housing Director Tiffany Sokol and Mahoning County Land Bank Executive Director Debora Flora presented a session entitled Working With Community Partners at the Ohio Land Bank Conference in Cleveland.

Strategic partnerships are vital to both effective land bank operations and targeted community development efforts. In the session, the two discussed how their organizations are partnering in the City of Youngstown, leveraging the strengths of both organizations to realize their respective missions. The pair provided concrete examples of their joint work together in neighborhood stabilization, land reuse, and housing, as well as explained why this multifaceted partnership has been and continues to be beneficial for both groups and the communities they serve.

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Thursday, September 24, 2015

On October 15th, YNDC will hold a free home maintenance workshop on Home Weatherization for individuals interested in learning more about do-it-yourself home maintenance.

The course will be held in the Community Workshop located directly behind YNDC's office building at 820 Canfield Road. Parking is available at 822 Bilingsgate Avenue. Please call 330.480.0423 to reserve your seat.