New program being created to work on community development of Ward 14 and the Stockyard neighborhood
by Chuck Hoven

(Plain Press, July 2010) A plan proposed by the Stockyard Redevelopment Organization (SRO) to expand its board and service area to serve both the Stockyard and Clark Metro neighborhoods has been rejected by Ward 14 Councilman Brian Cummins in favor of a plan calling for a new service model for Ward 14 and for portions of the Stockyards neighborhood that fall in Ward 15 and Ward 16.

Cummins said Ward 15 Councilman Matt Zone and Ward 16 Councilman Jay Westbrook support the new model and will contribute Community Development Block Grant dollars from Neighborhood Development Activities (NDA) for the new program.

Initially the new organization will have a program manager and 4 staff persons, said Cummins. The program will be administered by Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization (DSCDO); however, the program director and staff will be located in the Clark Fulton neighborhood in the heart of the service area, said Cummins. The staff members of the new program will initially have responsibilities in four areas: code enforcement, community organizing/outreach, housing rehab and referrals, and improvements to vacant and abandoned lots. Staff members of the Stockyard Redevelopment Organization have been invited to apply for the new positions.

Cummins said Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization was chosen to administer the new program because they have in place proven systems and practices he believes will yield results in the new service area. Cummins says he has committed $260,000 in Neighborhood Development Activities (NDA) funds to start up of the new organization, Councilman Matt Zone will contribute $90,000 to the effort and Councilman Jay Westbrook has committed $15,000. Neighborhood Progress Inc (NPI) has offered $40,000 to pay for consultants and some additional funds to aid in the transition process.

Cummins seemed unhappy that the SRO plan, developed with a consultant funded by the City of Cleveland Community Development department, had proposed in their second community meeting specific amounts of funding without consulting those providing the funding (City Council members provide the largest portion of the funding). However, Council members, even at the third community meeting, were not willing to commit specific amounts when asked about funding for the organization proposed in the SRO plan.

In addition to his concerns about process, Cummins felt that systems in place at Detroit Shoreway would allow the service area to attract additional dollars and services. He noted that with over 800 vacant and abandoned properties in the old Ward 14 last year, only 59 were demolished. He said, in contrast, in Anthony Brancatelli’s Ward, which includes the Slavic Village area, there were 11,000 vacant and abandoned houses and 259 were demolished last year. Cummins said this difference in services provided represents $1.2 to $1.6 in funding not being spent in the neighborhood.

In a June 10th letter addressed to the SRO Board of Trustees President Rev Pratt, Cummins offered the organization a 3-month contract to assist with the transition process. The SRO board rejected that offer. The Stockyard Redevelopment Organization still has some funds. The City of Cleveland Community Development Department awarded the organization $40,000 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2010. It is unclear what the current plans are for the future. SRO Executive Director Al Brazynets could not be reached for comment.

Councilman Cummins says Neighborhood Progress Inc. has hired consultants Gail Long and Jim Pelikan to assist with the transition to the new organization. He says Long and Pelikan will meet leaders of community organizations and social service agencies and eventually hold community meetings where residents and stakeholders can give input as to the needs of the community.

Cummins envisions a year long planning process that will eventually lead to the formation of a new service area comprised of all of the Stockyard and Clark Fulton neighborhoods, the Western portion of the Brooklyn Centre Neighborhood, and the southern portion of the Ohio City Statistical planning area. (An area from I-90 south to Clark Avenue that had traditionally been served by the Clark Metro Development Corporation.)

Cummins says the new organization could also work together with Tremont West Development Corporation (TWDC) to potentially offer some services to the Ward 14 portion of the Tremont neighborhood. That collaboration would not begin until January 2011.

In the long run, Cummins would like to see civic organizations formed in several distinct neighborhoods within the new service area. He envisions these organizations being composed of areas including multiple block clubs such as the Stockyards neighborhood, the Clark Fulton neighborhood, the Brooklyn Centre neighborhood, the Ward 14 portion of Tremont and the area between Clark and I-90 west of W. 25th Street in the Ohio City Statistical Planning Area. Cummins sees these civic organizations as volunteer led organizations working to help to set the agenda for their neighborhoods, push development along commercial strips, and advocate for programs and services residents and stakeholders would like to see in their neighborhoods. He hopes the civic organizations will be large and active enough to hold the program staff and those funding the program such as the city, NPI and city council members accountable for delivering programs and services to the neighborhood.

During the next six months, Cummins plans a transition period where a variety of organizations will be funded to help the new program provide services in Ward 14 and the target area. TWDC code enforcer Robert Rodgers will be asked to provide code enforcement services in the new service area for the next six months. Deb Zelaney of the Brooklyn Center Community Association will also provide code enforcement services in the Brooklyn Centre area during the transition period.

Ohio City Near West (OCNW) and TWDC will collaborate on safety services to the Tremont and Ohio City portions of the ward. In addition they will be asked to provide some commercial management services to the area. Several plans for the W. 25th Street Corridor have been developed and Cummins hopes to eventually have Old Brooklyn Community Development Organization, TWDC and OCNW the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency and Ohio Canal Corridor all working on one consolidated plan for the future of the corridor.

Cummins says he has given TWDC $100,000 in NDA funds (a reduction from $120,000 last year) for various services and another $5,000 to OCNW for services to Ward 14.

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