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wouldn't believe the changes this place has seen. Fifteen years
ago this part of the city was one of the worst spots in Minneapolis,
a city block devastated by years of urban flight and drug wars.
The block contained five crack houses, the housing stock was dilapidated,
crime was high, and property values had bottomed out. The difference
today is startling. Behind nine rehabilitated houses there are community
areas, a playground, and resident gardens. Property values are on
the rise and residents' hopes for a stable community that will provide
a nurturing environment for children and adults alike are being
realized. |
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The children's
playground
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Instrumental
to the recent turnaround is a local community development corporation
(CDC), Hope Community, Inc. In the late 1980's, as the neighborhood
declined and homeowners sold their properties for one dollar just
to get rid of them, Hope Community began purchasing houses. The
organization's intention was to create affordable rental units
that would engender stability and community to combat the rampant
problems of the neighborhood.To
achieve this end, they purchased houses in proximity to one another
on a single block and began rehabilitating and renting them.
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The common
area
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The open
space developed gradually. Deanna Foster, Executive Director of
Hope Community, says of the early days, "There was one neighbor
who always had barbeques. When all the houses had fences around
the backyards, she'd holler to all her neighbors to come over.
They could see her, but they could only get there by going out
their front doors and walking to her front door. So, by watching
this sort of thing, we started figuring out the uses and functions
a common space would perform."
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In developing the space,
Hope Community used principles of Crime Prevention Through Environmental
Design (CPTED) and defensible space - not by bringing in experts,
but based on how they saw people living. They pulled down the
fences that had separated the back yards, creating a context of
a larger open green space. They built walkways where people walked,
they constructed a pavilion area on a concrete pad left from an
old garage, and they built a playground and a garden with resident
planting plots. In so doing, Deanna Foster says, they created
both physical spaces and social relationships.
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The community pavillion
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As Hope Community Inc.
acquired more properties, the common area grew; money that would
have gone toward building fences was earmarked for improving the
space. As the community grew, the community area became the center
of the community.
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There are
no gates or physical barriers preventing access to the common area
from the street, but it is clear that the space is not a public
park. Drawing on principles of CPTED, visual cues establish privacy,
promote safety, and discourage crime. For example, according to
CPTED principles, every space should have an occupied house facing
it, and Hope Community puts screened back porches on all the housing
they develop. This arrangement facilitates interaction between the
neighbors, ensures that the open spaces are transparent to observation
by the residents, and allows neighborhood children to come and use
the play areas. |
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The renters
are low-income people, and very diverse; residents speak English,
Spanish, Somali, and Hmong. But, says Foster, the family lives
are stable because the kids are happy. The extraordinary diversity
found on the block causes little tension because of the bonds
formed in the common areas, and the stability in family life translates
to stability on the block - the renters never want to leave. Foster
reflects, "There is a spirit of calmness and relationship here,
whereas out on the street it is frenzied and frightening." She
attributes much of the togetherness to the children in the development.
By providing safe spaces where young people learn to play creatively
and independently, the residents at Hope Community are raising
children who already consider themselves to be community leaders,
and who exhibit the confidence and networking skills necessary
to be successful.
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Hope Community is currently
developing ten more residences, some of which they plan to sell
to homeowners. With property values rising, they want to save
the area from gentrification, and are considering using a hybrid
of a land trust to keep the land in the hands of the people who
have helped create the community. The successfulness of the development
is leading to bigger projects for the Hope Community, like rehabilitating
a nearby city park. Foster believes the commons communicates a
message. "The pavilion says we get together, the walkways say
we are connected, the playgrounds say we care about our children,
there are flower beds everywhere that are planted with the help
of a lot of volunteers. The commons is advertising for community."
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All
Photos courtesy of Hope Community, Inc.
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Hope Community has achieved
a great success in an area many had given up on, and shows how an organized
and managed common area for residents can foster a sense of community
in a very troubled urban area.
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