Pilsen Community Leaders Participate at NCP's Getting it Done National Conference
Community Organizers and leaders from all over the nation came together to learn about Chicago's implementation of NCP programs
On Wednesday March 26th and Thursday March 27th, the Resurrection Project (TRP) participated in the Chicago’s Getting It Done: New Tools for Communities Conference. The event was sponsored by the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and held at the University of Illinois Chicago. This event offered a variety of workshops designed to strengthen the New Communities Program (NCP) models nationwide, as community leaders and development professionals shared best practices on topics such as implementation of programs, effective deal making, communications, leveraging resources, planning, leadership, and evaluating impact. People from all over the nation were there to learn about the successes and challenges faced by all participating NCP neighborhoods, but also to learn specifically on how to implement successful programs in their own communities.
TRP's Program Coordinator Israel Vargas hosted our Quality of Life Plan booth
Several years running now, LISC appointed the Resurrection Project as Pilsen’s lead agency for the New Communities Program, a long term initiative of LISC/Chicago. This program aims to support comprehensive community development in Chicago Neighborhoods. Goals include the implementation of programs to resurrect our challenged community, strengthen those in peril of displacement and conserve the diversity of areas in the path of gentrification. As our quality of life plan suggests, structured community planning is key to our planning process. While we roll out and continue implementation of initiatives and programs, we learn more about best practices, giving TRP an active role in the Getting It Done workshops facilitators.
TRP was able to share its best practices in forums dedicated to intricate issues that our community currently faces such as immigration, safety and affordable housing. One example of these workshops was entitled “The Impact of Immigration on Community Development”. It was facilitated by TRP’s Chief Executive Officer Raul Raymundo. With the aid of Luis Gutierrez from Latinos Progresando and Lawrence Benito from Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, this workshop touched on the problems and challenges of our immigrant communities. Overall it emphasized how to promote the positive aspects and contributions of the immigrant communities in order to contest the negative press they unfairly receive.
Another workshop was facilitated by TRP staff was the “Safe Streets, Safe Neighborhoods” workshop. Facilitated by Alvaro Obregon, NCP Director at The Resurrection Project, this workshop’s main focus was on youth initiatives. These programs promote involvement in positive community building initiatives to eradicate crime and violence. Rafi Peterson of CeaseFire was there along with Laura Lane from NCP Woodlawn to talk about what has worked in their neighborhoods. Collaborations with the police and neighbors, and other initiatives such as CeaseFire were established as a “strategic public health effort to reverse the violence epidemic using highly trained street outreach staff, public education campaigns and community mobilization.”
Kristen Komara, the TRP Policy Director formed part of a discussion group workshop designed to discuss a rampant problem being faced by all communities nowadays. Entitled “The Foreclosure Crisis,” Komara participated along with facilitator Donna Stites, Petra Villazana from Greater Southwest Development Corporation and Mike Reardon from NHS Chicago Lawn. They held an open debate where organizational leaders shared their experiences and brainstormed on how to deal with this growing crisis. They touched on subjects such as recognizing the importance and limitations of financial literacy, and how to address this problem at a neighborhood level as the demand for counseling services has increased while the numbers of counselors have not.
TRP's Alejandro Morales was co-host for the Pilsen's Jobs and More tour
Finally, and through our partners at Instituto Del Progreso Latino, we were able to give a tour of Pilsen. Juan Salgado and TRP’s Alejandro Morales directed the tour entitled “Pilsen Jobs and More”. The bus tour transported conference attendees around Pilsen, showing them our completed projects, new projects sites, and sites for new economic development such as the Pilsen Industrial Corridor, Cermak Road/Blue Island streetscaping and El Paseo - a recreational, residential and institutional corridor.
TRP team members demonstrated strong participation and effectively showcased what we have been able to achieve in Pilsen, Back of the Yards and Little Village. This becomes a model to other community leaders and non-for profit employees on a national level. LISC and NCP offer a platform for us to share how we are advancing our communities while we collaborate and share innovations.