UP 378 Community Development Workshop in Alta Sita

UP 378

Syllabus

Scope of Sevices

Work Plan

Tool Kit

Neighborhood Information

ASNI Communication

LA 338

ARCH 374

1. Welcome – Dr. Helen Hudlin, President of ASNI
2. Introduction to Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc
3. Overview of the Neighborhood Planning Process – Janni Sorenson, Research Assistant with the East St. Louis Action Research Project
4. Mapping Your Neighborhood – Tom Shields, Project Coordinator of ESLARP
5. Identifying Our Priorities – "Community on the Go"
6. Camera Exercise – "Put Your Neighborhood in Pictures"
7. Recruit Volunteers for Resident Interviews, February 19 – 20

REMEMBER! NEXT MEETING IS MARCH 9^TH AT 6:30 P.M. IN ST. REGIS.

SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THE REVITALIZATION EFFORTS IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD! PLEASE BRING YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO THE NEXT MEETING.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please contact LaTonya Burton at NTAC (271-9605) or Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. at 875-1030.

The Alta Sita 1999 Neighborhood Revitalization Plan

ESLARP, Who are we.

  Faculty and students from the departments of Urban
  Planning, Architecture and Landscape Architecture.

Examples:
   - Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center (NTAC)
   - Design proposals for MetroLink Expansion
   - Restoration of The Katherine Dunham museum
   - Volunteer outreach weekends

Participatory Planning Philosophy

• ESLARP’s primary goal is to improve the quality of life in ESL through research, teaching and outreach activities provided by UIUC students and faculty. ESLARP seeks to achieve this goal by:
• Supporting the development efforts of East St. Louis    Neighborhood based organizations and municipal agencies.
• Enhancing the planning, development and management capacity of the City’s non-profit organizations and government agencies.
• Training a new generation of civic leaders and university students skilled in participatory approaches to community planning and design.
• Pursuing basic and applied research on urban policy issues confronting the East St. Louis community.

The combination of resident’s insight knowledge and experience and student’s skills in a broad range of planning related issues, gives optimal conditions for creating a good Neighborhood Plan.

Why make neighborhood plans?
Planning is a systematic way of thinking in order to come up with better decisions that will accommodate the needs and wishes of residents.
(Housing, schools, parks, roads, stores, offices, industry, garbage collection, crime prevention, health facilities, cultural arts, etc.)

The possibility of achieving funding to implement is greater when a structured and well-documented plan is included in the application for funding 
(Very important in that we have the possibility to apply for funding from the new $100 million federal Empowerment-Zone fund) 

Through the planning process the participants will create a new understanding and documentation of the neighborhoods conditions that will be useful for all residents now and in the future. 

The Planning Process (*Some dates subject to change)

January 29-31:  Student Orientation to Alta Sita
-Outreach 
- Land Use Data Collection
- Church Visits

February 9: Defining Neighborhood Boundaries, Assets and Priorities
- Community Mapping Exercise
- Prioritizing Wheel of Activities

February 9-24: Documenting your Neighborhood
- Camera Exercise/Documenting Area 

February 19-20: Perceptions of Your Neighborhood
- Noon-5pm -  Interviews (Institutional and Residential)
- 5:30 pm Dinner at Helen’s Restaurant for participants in interviews
- 10:00am-4:00pm   Institutional and Residential Interviews

March 4-5  What do the kids think about living in Alta Sita???
- Children’s Planning Exercise

March 9:  ASNI Meeting : Getting the big picture of present and future
- Shoe Box SWOT Exercise

Mar 14- 20  UIUC Spring Break and Champaign High School 
- Outreach for Neighborhood Summit!!!

March 26-27:  Alta Sita Neighborhood Summit: 
- Residents will critique preliminary student plans and indicate preferences  for  final  plans.

April 13 : Alta Sita Monthly Meeting: How do we make these ideas real?
- Follow up on preliminary plans from the Neighborhood Summit. 
- Select a small physical improvement project for the April Work Weekend

April 23-24 : Outreach/Work Weekend in Alta Sita
- Hands-on physical projects with residents.

May 5 :  On-campus presentation of neighborhood plans.
- You will be invited to the Champaign Campus to hear students present their plans and designs for the first time.

May 10-14:  Student Final Examinations.

May 18:   Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. Meeting. 
- Present complete data in first draft of neighborhood plans and designs.

 SUMMER: Residents and Students to complete Final Editing

Re:  Alta Site Neighborhood Planning Project
Date:  January 28, 1999

Congratulations, on your successful effort to secure Empowerment Zone designation and funding for East St. Louis. You both deserve a great deal of credit for pulling the East St. Louis team together that worked on the application. From Damon and Patricia, I heard a few stories regarding how much work the application entailed! Bravo, from your UIUC colleagues on this effort!

This Spring, architecture, landscape architecture and urban and regional planning students will be working with Dr. Hudlin and the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. to complete a comprehensive neighborhood improvement plan for this area. Brian Orland, Bob Selby and myself will be working on the project along with Craig Miller and LaTonya Burton from the Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center.

On Friday, January 29, 1999 we are bringing the 48 students who will be working on the Alta Sita Plan to East St. Louis for a basic orientation. We would welcome the opportunity to introduce our students to you during lunch which will be held in the Community Room of the Straightway Baptist Church 3300 Bond Avenue. If you are free for lunch and have a few minutes to say a few words about your department/program we would love to have you as our luncheon guests. 

Thanks again for your consideration of this request. I had spoken to your offices on Tuesday about this possibility. I apologize for getting this confirming fax to you so late.

At the beginning of the meeting Dr. Hudlin gave me a copy of the Alta Sita Neighbors Inc. brochure and reviewed for us the basic goals and objectives of the organization. She indicated that the organization met the second Tuesday of each month at St. Regis Church. We then spent a few minutes confirming the basic borders of the neighborhood. Dr. Hudlin confirmed the borders of the neighborhood as we had understood them from the city’s existing neighborhood map. She also indicated that the organization was registered with the state as a non-profit organization and was recognized by the IRS as a 501c3.

Dr. Hudlin asked if we could assist her organization in securing sales tax exemption status from the Illinois Department of Revenue. She indicated that she had tried to secure such a designation on two occasions with the help of her accountant/auditor but had been unsuccessful. I told her that we would ask the U of I School of Law’s Legal Clinic to assist her organization in this effort.

I then asked Dr. Hudlin to share her expectations regarding the neighborhood planning process with me. She said that she wanted to see a plan created that included a set of concrete proposals that could assist her organization in achieving their six primary goals: improve local housing, strengthen code enforcement,  upgrade neighborhood infrastructure, expand recreational opportunities, enhance educational and training opportunities and re-enforce police protection.

She described her organization’s close working relationship with Chief Chambers and discussed her efforts to get a police substation established in the Alta Sita Plaza Housing Complex on Converse. While the city agreed to set-up such a local patrol facility; they had been unable to do so as a result of budgetary limitations. Ms. Jill Williams, the manager of this subsidized housing project, had agreed to make free space available to the police department for the purpose of establishing a substation. She appears willing to do so in the future if the police department can secure the funds to create a local substation.

I then described the basic process we planned to use to create a comprehensive stabilization plan for the Alta Site area. This process is presented in the Preliminary Draft Scope of Neighborhood Planning Services (January 20, 1999) already posted on the web. Dr. Hudlin endorsed the approach presented in this document. She especially liked the emphasis on community outreach and resident participation in the planning process. I told her that “Working with the U of I on a neighborhood plan was similar to getting your house painted. While your home will look great in the end; things will be a bit chaotic in the short-run.” I told her that we would need a considerable amount of time during her organization’s regular monthly meetings which are held on the second Tuesday to get resident input on the plan. Dr. Hudlin indicated that this request would pose  no problem. She indicated that attendance was lower at these meetings during the winter (5-10 persons) and higher during the warmer months (30-40 persons)

I indicated that we would like to have residents complete a mapping exercise at her February 9th meeting and a photographic analysis activity at her March 9th meeting. She agreed to move her regular April meeting from Tuesday, April 13th to Saturday, April 17th so we could gather resident feedback on our analysis of existing resident conditions and elicit resident input on the plan’s goals, objectives and major activities. Dr. Hudlin welcomed the opportunity to move the date of the April meeting because she was going to be available on the 17th and was going to be out of town on the 13th.

Dr. Hudlin asked us if we could assist her in preparing an overall business plan to enable her organization to qualify as a Tax Incremental Finance vendor. I indicated that we could do this subsequent to the completion of the final plan in the Fall of 1999. Dr. Hudlin asked us to consider focusing our housing recommendations on Virginia Place where ASNI have already accomplished so much. If Virginia Place could be developed into a “model street” she felt that new investment could be attracted to other parts of the neighborhood. She also informed us that John Downs, as experienced housing consultant from Washington DC, had been working with their organization to pursue its housing agenda. I indicated that we knew John, were very aware of his excellent professional credentials and would welcome the opportunity to work with him in creating the housing element of our plan.

Dr. Hudlin reminded me that Jeanelle Stovall and Darryl Burrows of the Katherine Dunham Center for Arts and Humanities had agreed to assist ASNI in getting children involved in the local planning process. I told Dr. Hudlin that we had worked closely with Jeanelle and would coordinate our outreach efforts among neighborhood children with the Dunham Center. I finished the meeting by informing Dr. Hudlin that LaTonya Burton of the NTAC would be our primary liaison with ASNI. I told her that I would forward a letter to her describing the next steps in the process. We discussed the need to get one or more ASNI representatives to speak with our students when they come to Alta Sita for their first outreach weekend on January 28-30. Dr. Hudlin indicated that she would work with me in recruiting someone to speak with the students during that weekend.

January 24, 1999

To:  Dr. Helen Hudlin, President, Alta Sita Neighbors Inc.

From:  Ken Reardon, Associate Professor in Urban and Regional Planning

Re:  Our Collaborative Planning Efforts

Date:  January 24, 1999

Our students are very exciting about working with you and your group this Spring. This week our urban planning students completed preliminary drafts of the following items for your review:

1. Homeowner Flyer- We plan to knock on every door in Alta Sita this Friday and Saturday to inform residents about your group and to invite them to come to your February 9th meeting in order to get involved in the planning process. This flyer, along with the Alta Sita Neighbors brochure will be given to each resident of the area.

2. Press Release- We plan to send this release to every newspaper, television station, radio station and cable network to inform them about your group, its meeting, and our joint planning effort.

3. Public Service Announcement- We plan to send cards announcing your monthly meeting to all news outlets so they can encourage local residents to attend your regular meetings.

4. Church Letter- We plan to mail this letter to the eight churchs in the Alta Sita area inviting them to become involved in the neighborhood planning process. We plan to attend services at each of these churchs this weekend to extend personal  invitations to these pastors and their congregations. We are  hoping that they will make the enclosed pulpit announcement
and place the accompanying written announcement in their bulletins.

 5. Poster- This will be displayed in area stores and posted throughout the neighborhood.

Please take a few minutes to review these items. Please mark any changes you would like to see be made on these drafts and fax them to my office at 618-244-1717. My students will make all of the changes you recommend and will then distribute these items to the appropriate parties.

We will to arrive in East St. Louis this Friday, January 29, 1999 at 10 am. We will spend the morning giving the students a tour of the city. Following lunch, the students will begin door-knocking in Alta Sita to encourage residents to join ASNI and to become involved in the planning process. A smaller number of students will begin to collect information regarding local land uses, building conditions and site conditions. On Friday evening (January 29th) at 5:30 pm we would like a few representatives of the Alta Sita Neighbors Inc. to have dinner with our students and faculty. Following dinner, we would like these Alta Sita residents to welcome the students to the area and to tell them a little bit about the neighborhood and the work of your group. We are trying to locate a restaurant in East St. Louis where we can have such an informal dinner and talk. I am confident we will have the location nailed down by Tuesday or Wednesday. 

The Alta Sita residents will be our guests for dinner. I would be happy to call these individuals before Friday regarding what we would like them to speak about during dinner on Friday. We would also be happy to provide transportation to and from dinner for these individuals. We welcome this opportunity to work with you and your organization this Spring on the development of an outstanding neighborhood improvement plan for the Alta Sita area. In addition, we look forward to working with ASNI for many years in order to help residents implement the major projects contained in our proposed community revitalization plan.
 

To:  Dr. Helen Hudlin, President, Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc.
From:  Ken Reardon, Associate Professor, UIUC
Re:  February 9, 1999
Date:  February 5, 19999
______________________________________________________

Last Weekend-

We had a very productive weekend in East St. Louis! We completed land use, building conditions and site conditions surveys for 1,200 building lots in the Alta Sita area. In addition, our students knocked on the doors of every occupied house in the neighborhood to invite residents to your February 9th meeting. During our door-knocking effort, we distributed over 700 flyers and collected the names of 135 individuals who wished to be kept informed of ASN’s activities. Finally, we had students attend Sunday services at six neighborhood-based churches. During these church services, we had the opportunity to make a formal announcement regarding your February 9th meeting before each of these congregations. Resident response was very positive and we expect a good turn out at your meeting! Towards this end, we are making reminder calls for the meeting to every one who filled out an interest form during the weekend.

Next Week’s Meeting-

Tom Shields, ESLARP’s Project Coordinator on campus will be bringing fifteen students to your meeting. Tom and Janni Sorensen, a Ph.D. student, will organize the “Community Planning” portion of the meeting. We would like to use the majority of the meeting to get your members and interested local residents actively involved in the neighborhood planning process. Towards this end, we would like to suggest the following agenda.

I. Welcome-     Dr. Helen Hudlin

II. Introduction to ASN-   (An ASN Leader, maybe Emily or Linda)
  Goals
  Objectives
  Accomplishments
  Membership
  Involvement

III. Overview of the Neighborhood Planning Process-    Janni Sorensen, ESLARP

  What is neighborhood planning
  Benefits to local residents
  Steps in the process
  Resident involvement

IV. Mapping Your Neighborhood’s
  Assets- Tom Shields, ESLARP

Tom will organize residents in groups of five to six to create color maps of Alta Sita showing its: borders, landmarks, assets, sub-areas and problem locations.

Each team will contribute their ideas to an overall ASN “Map of Alta Sita”

V. Identifying Our Priorities-  Tom Shields, ESLARP

Tom will invite residents to identify an initial list of desired outcomes which they would like to see emerge from the planning process. People
will be asked to fill in a “Wheel of Fortune” type chart with improvements they would like to see in the environment, housing, labor market, etc.

VI. Documenting our Area-

Residents will then be given disposable cameras to take pictures of what they love about the area, what they would like to see changed, and what could be better utilized. They will be asked to return these cameras in two weeks so they can be used at your next meeting. 

VII. Mobilizing the Neighborhood-

Finally, we will ask for volunteers to work with the students on February 19-20 when we will be doing “in-depth” interviews with each head of household in Alta Sita to elicit more detailed input regarding improvements they would like to see occur in the neighborhood. Our experience  shows that we get a much better response if one member of the interview team is a neighborhood resident. 

Preparing for Next Week

I will have the students call all of the individuals who indicated an interest in ASN during our door-knocking effort. It would be great if your officers, committee members and block club leaders could call the 88 members on your mailing list to encourage them to make an effort to get out to the February 9th meeting. Meanwhile, LaTonya Burton of NTAC is trying to get ASN on “Talk of the People” and other radio and cable programs this week in order to get the word out about the meeting in order to encourage people to come. LaTonya has informed me that an article describing ASN and its efforts appeared in this week’s Monitor as a result of her work. This and other press coverage should encourage people to attend your meeting.

Final Note-

I will be unable to attend the February 9th meeting due to a prior engagement. I have been asked by a former student who is now an Associate Professor of Planning at the University of Nebraska to give the 1999 Hyde Lecture. As you know, its hard to turn down a request from a former student! Tom Shields and Janni Sorensen will do an excellent job managing our involvement in your meeting. I am confident that our Alta Sita planning efforts will get off the ground with a bang on Tuesday under your leadership with Tom and Janni’s help!

Dear Dr. Hudlin,

This is a memo to update you on our progress and to provide you with our
suggested agenda for the March 9th meeting.  If you have any suggestions,
feedback or changes, please do not hesitate to contact me or Ken Reardon.

Weekend of February 20th
We had a very productive weekend in East St. Louis! We completed 147 resident
surveys in the Alta Sita area. In addition, our students worked at the Bride of
Christ Church dry-walling and painting. During the interviews the student also
took time out to inform the residents about Alta Sita Neighbors Inc. and to
introduced them to the idea of working collaboratively with students and staff
from the University on a Neighborhood plan. The residents we interviewed were 
all invited to come to ASNI's March 9th    Meeting, so we hope to see a lot of
new faces at this meeting.

Upcoming:

March 7-8, 1999
Students from the University of Colorado Alternative Spring Break program will
help  flyer the Alta Sita neighborhood about the March 9, 1999 meeting.

March 9, 1999

I will have the students call all of the individuals who indicated an interest
in ASN during our door- knocking/survey effort. It would be great if your
officers, committee members and block club leaders could call the 88 members on
your mailing list to encourage them to make an effort to get out to the March
9th meeting. 

As planned, the March 9th meeting will be an opportunity to begin to move from
general abstract ideas to more substantive program ideas.   As the attached
agenda indicates, Alta Sita residents will begin to prioritize some initial
design ideas presented by Architecture and Landscape Architecture students.  We
will then follow up on the Camera Exercise by participating in an analysis of
the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in the Alta Sita
Neighborhood.

March 15-16, 1999
Residents from the Alta Sita Neighborhood are invited to join UIUC Alternative
Spring Break Students as they conduct street condition surveys in the Alta Sita
Neighborhood.

March 8-20, 1999
Students from the University of Colorado, University of Illinois, University of
Tennessee and Champaign high school students will participate in Alternative
Spring Break projects in East St. Louis, including several clean-up projects in
the Alta Sita Neighborhood.  Residents are invited to join these students in
working on these projects which will be announced at the March 9th meeting.

March 26-27, 1999
Residents are invited to participate in interviews with institutional leaders
in the Alta Sita Neighborhood.

April 17, 1999
Everyone interested in the Alta Sita plan should attend the Neighborhood Summit
to participate in hearing and providing feedback on initial program ideas for
the Alta Sita Neighborhood.

April 23-24, 1999
The April Outreach Weekend will emphasize physical improvement projects in the
Alta Sita neighborhood.

May 14, 1999 
Students from the University of Illinois will present the draft of the
Neighborhood  plan to the residents of Alta Sita for feedback and review.

Please indicate any potential conflicts with the dates above.  We look forward
to seeing you on Tuesday evening!

Sincerely,
 

Tom Shields, Project Coordinator
East St. Louis Action Research Project

Alta Sita Neighborhood Comprehensive Planning Project
Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc.
and
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign East St. Louis Action Research Project. 

I.      Welcome - Dr. Helen Hudlin      10 minutes 

II.     Planning Process status report (What have we done so far?)  10 minutes
UIUC students from Urban Planning will review the steps taken so far in the
planning process, including Land Use Surveys, Census research, Property
Ownership research, Mapping Exercise, Resident Surveys, Architectural Design
Projects and the Camera Exercise.

III.    SWOT (Facilitator Ken Reardon, ESLARP)  (45 minutes)
We will organize residents in groups of five to six to work on organizing the
pictures from last month's Camera exercise in to Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities and Constraints.   Each team will contribute their ideas to an
overall ASN SWOT.

IV.     Presentation of Design Ideas (45 Minutes)
Students from the Architecture and Landscape Architecture departments will
present the design ideas for  three projects (15 minutes each).

V.      Next Steps
Residents will be asked to sign up for the March 26-27th Institutional
Interviews, and the neighborhood summit on April 17, 1999. 

PEOPLE POWER FOR NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT IN ALTA SITA

The leaders of the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. (ASNI) are pleased to announce the launch of a comprehensive neighborhood improvement initiative in conjunction with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP).

Residents, businesses, and community-based organizations, including schools, churches, and fraternal organizations, located within the Alta Sita neighborhood (from 22nd to 36th Streets and from the Southern Railroad Tracks to the East St. Louis City Limits) are invited to participate in this exciting new community development effort.

The Alta Sita Neighborhood Improvement Initiative will begin on Tuesday, February 9, 1999 at 6:30 P.M. at the St. Regis Catholic Church located at 3500 Market Avenue in the Alta Site neighborhood.  Local residents and leaders are invited to share their ideas regarding how to improve Alta Sita's existing housing stock, expand recreational opportunities, enhance education and job training opportunities, improve police protection, and strengthen municipal enforcement of local sanitation codes.

Architecture, landscape architecture and urban planning students from the University of Illinois will be canvasing the Alta Sita neighborhood on January 29th and 30th on behalf of the Alta Site Neighborhood Inc. to invite neighborhood residents, local leaders and businesses to become involved in this grassroots planning process.  Similar neighborhood plans developed by residents of the Emerson Park, Lansdowne, Edgemont, Olivette Park, and Winstanley/Industrial Park neighborhoods with the assistance of the University of Illinois have produced over $3 million in neighborhood improvements. Among the projects completed by these community/university partnerships were the construction of the Illinois Avenue Playground, renovation of the Cannady School Playground, erection of African Huts at the Dunham Museum as well as the development of the East St. Louis Farmers Market.

For more information regarding the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. or the comprehensive neighborhood improvement initiative, please contact:

Dr. Helen Hudlin  Ms.Latonya Burton
Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc.      Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center (NTAC)
1460 State Street  348 R Collinsville Avenue
East St. Louis, IL  62205 East St. Louis, IL
(618) 875-1030   (618) 271-9605

For the convenience of those wanting to attend the ASNI meeting, childcare, as well as refreshments will be provided.  If in need of transportation to the meeting, please contact either Ms. Latonya Burton at the NTAC or Mrs. O’Dell Winslow on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays between 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m.

Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. 
1460 State Street 
East St. Louis, IL  62205 
Contacts:
Dr. Helen Hudlin, President
Alta Sita Neighborhood Inc.
(618) 274-0563

Latonya Burton, Community Planner
UIUC Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center
(618) 271-9605

PEOPLE POWER PROMOTES NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT IN ALTA SITA

Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. cordially invites residents, business owners and religious leaders of the Alta Sita neighborhood to join their newly launched Comprehensive Neighborhood Improvement Initiative. This new community development planning effort will begin on Tuesday, February 9, 1999 at 6:30 P.M. at the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. regular monthly meeting which will take place at St. Regis Catholic Church, 3500 Market Avenue, East St. Louis.  The Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. was established to maintain and improve the health, education, safety and welfare of the residents of the Alta Site neighborhood and the City of East St. Louis. Through the cooperation of local residents and leaders ASNI has been able to assist neighborhood residents in rehabilitating their homes, constructing new houses and improving public open spaces in Alta Sita. If you are interested in working with others to improve the Alta Sita neighborhood; we look forward to seeing you on February 9th.  For additional information, please contact the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. at: 1460 State Street, East St. Louis, IL  62205, (618) 875-1030 on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays between 10:00a.m. and 2:00p.m.

Dear Neighbor,

Since 1996, Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. (ASNI) has worked hard to respond to the concerns of area residents and businesses by undertaking housing and community development projects that strengthen the stability and vitality of our neighborhood.  Our group has sought to enhance the quality of life of our area by implementing projects that improve Alta Sita's housing stock, enhance neighborhood open spaces, strengthen crime prevention efforts and expand adult education and job training opportunities.  ANSI is committed to improving conditions in our neighborhood by encouraging local residents, business persons and community leaders to work together to solve the most important problems confronting our neighborhood. 

During the past three years, Alta Site Neighbors, Inc. have completed an impressive series of neighborhood improvement projects.  Such projects include: the development of a ten-block walking trail, the construction of an attractive mini-park at the corner of McCasland Avenue and 33rd Street, and the clearing of illegally dumped trash from ten neighborhood lots. Within the past year, Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. has successfully rehabilitated its first residential property and built two new homes on Virginia Place.

Leaders of the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. are pleased to announce the launch of a Comprehensive Neighborhood Improvement Initiative in cooperation with the University of Illinois' East St. Louis Action Research Project. Residents, local business persons and community leaders are invited to join ASNI and the U of I in devising a neighborhood improvement plan that strengthens the physical, economic and social base of our neighborhood. Similar neighborhood-based plans completed by residents of Emerson Park, Lansdowne, Edgemont, Olivette Park, and Winstanley Industry Park have generated more than $3 million of new investment in these areas.

Residents and local leaders are invited to take an active part in this new effort which will begin at the next regular meeting of the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. 

Date: Tuesday, February 9, 1999
Time: 6:30 PM
Place: St. Regis Catholic Church
Location: 3500 Market Street

Participants at this meeting will have the opportunity to share their ideas and proposals for strengthening our neighborhood. We look forward to seeing you on February 9th; we encourage you to bring your family, neighbors and friends to this important meeting. Childcare and transportation will be provided. Individuals in need of transportation to the meeting are encouraged to call LaTonya Burton of the Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center at 271-9605.
 

Sincerely,

Dr. Helen Hudlin, President
Alta Site Neighbors, Inc. 

Pulpit Announcement

Bulletin Notice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: 
Dr. Helen Hudlin, President
Alta Sita Neighbors Inc
(618) 274-0563

Ms. Latonya Burton, Community Planner
Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center
(618) 271-9605

Alta Sita Kicks Off Planning Process with Neighborhood Meeting

Residents, businesses, and community-based organizations, including schools, churches, and fraternal organizations, located within the Alta Sita neighborhood (from 22nd to 36th Streets and from the Southern Railroad Tracks to the East St. Louis City Limits) are invited to participate in this exciting new community development effort.

The Alta Sita Neighborhood Improvement Initiative will begin on Tuesday, February 9, 1999 at 6:30 P.M. at the St. Regis Catholic Church located at 3500 Market Avenue in the Alta Site neighborhood.  Local residents and leaders are invited to share their ideas regarding how to improve Alta Sita's existing housing stock, expand recreational opportunities, enhance education and job training opportunities, improve police protection, and strengthen municipal enforcement of local sanitation codes.

Similar neighborhood plans developed by residents of the Emerson Park, Lansdowne, Edgemont, Olivette Park, and Winstanley/Industrial Park neighborhoods with the assistance of the University of Illinois have produced over $3 million in neighborhood improvements. Among the projects completed by these community/university partnerships were the construction of the Illinois Avenue Playground, renovation of the Cannady School Playground, erection of African Huts at the Dunham Museum as well as the development of the East St. Louis Farmers Market.

For more information regarding the Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc. or the comprehensive neighborhood improvement initiative, please contact:

Dr. Helen Hudlin                          Ms.Latonya Burton
Alta Sita Neighbors, Inc.              Neighborhood Technical Assistance Center
1460 State Street                 or    348 R Collinsville Avenue
East St. Louis, IL  62205             East St. Louis, IL
(618) 875-1030                            (618) 271-9605

For the convenience of those wanting to attend the ASNI meeting, childcare, transportation and refreshments will be provided.  If in need of transportation to the meeting, please contact either Dr. Helen Hudlin or Ms. Latonya Burton.