SitemapAngel Cruz, owner of Little Millys Oven Fresh Pizza, wants to be proactive about the neighborhood his business is in and the city he calls home.
So he is a part of the South Avenue Business Association.
“With one, you can be strong,” he said. “When you unite, you can become a power. I am hoping to improve the quality of life [here].”
Cruz was one of the business owners and representatives who came together Monday morning to discuss plans for the South Avenue corridor that is home to both residents and businesses.
The meeting at the Metro Assembly Church on South Avenue is the second for the association, which formed through the South Avenue Area Neighborhood Development Initiative or S.A.A.N.D.I.
Police Chief Robin Lees discussed community policing, the “grass-roots” effort that allows for police to become a part of the community. Not only would it provide a police presence, but it also is a way for the police to connect to the community.
In the South Avenue corridor, there were three homicides last year; two were drug-related and the other occurred during a robbery at a retail store.
“What we need you to do is to see what doesn’t belong and what looks suspicious and alert our officers,” Lees said.
The Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp., in partnership with the city, is working on an application for the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Program to fund a strategic plan that would give police and other community partners a strategy for high-crime areas.
In this case, the focus is on the significant size of the South Side. “It provides a new lens to look at some of these challenges,” said Ian Beniston, YNDC executive director. “With or without the grant, hopefully, we can have a broad table of folks looking at this.”
The YNDC also recently applied for a state grant through the Ohio Department of Transportation to put in sidewalks, crosswalks, signs, signals and other upgrades around Taft Elementary School.
The coordinator of Green Youngstown discussed plans to beautify and clean up parts of the city.
Councilman John R. Swierz, D-7th, a S.A.A.N.D.I. board member, said the initiative also has a possibility of securing a building.
Swierz said there are about 75 active businesses on South Avenue. Of those, about 10 have shown an interest in the South Avenue Business Association, said B.J. Duckworth of Coca-Cola Refreshments.
The next association meeting June 29 will include more business-related topics.
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