Our ReConnect Program was initiated to plug people into active citizenship—Volunteerism and Revitalization of Our Neighborhoods

The program conveys how neighborhoods are more than a grouping of houses; neighborhoods are homes filled with people who are connected by a sense of community who share the values of safety, quality of life and pride. We want to convey how much hard work is involved in building community, and at the same time, express how even the smallest contributions add up. The ReConnect Program strives to connect residents with tools they need to maintain a sustainable and thriving neighborhood. The ReConnect has four major components:

Blight Reduction

• Board Ups—to secure vacant properties against vandalism, arson, looting and squatting; we chose to use local public school art classes as the painters during our city-wide Neighborhood Peace Mural Project
• Street Blitzes—groups amass to clear debris from one end of the street to the other, mowing, pruning, edging, performing light-duty maintenance etc.
• Putting garbage cans and flower planters at the street corners
• Tree Plantings with Re-Tree WNY twice a year and maintaining the neighborhood’s arboreal inventory
• Murals and Public Art
• Installing bike racks and bus stop benches/weather shields

Green Space Development

• Initiating Community Vegetable Gardens which improve access to fresh food and better nutrition in our low-income neighborhoods
• Creating Pocket Parks, safe pass-throughs of vacant lots and edible landscaping
• Securing Vacant Lots against illegal dumping
• Transforming Vacant Lots into aesthetic, useful and educational spaces
• Emphasizing best practices for indigenous plantings, rain gardens, compost, sustainable improvements

Supporting Home Ownership

• Building a space where the neighborhood can meet, organize and learn (158 Eaton Street)
• Operating a TOOL LiBRARY for garden, shop, power and hand tools so that groups can equip their own “Action Events”
• Maintain a yearly calendar of workshops which teach folks aspects of gardening, tool usage, and home improvement
• Provide access and information about the responsibility and process of becoming a home owner including: loans, grants, coaching, the City’s in rem Auction, housing code violations, avoiding foreclosure etc

Community Building

• Create a space where block clubs, women’s groups, neighbors and supporters can congregate to organize their own meetings, trainings or events
• Assess needs and concerns of the neighborhood and ways to meet those needs; safety of persons, property, and the streets is always the biggest concern
• Celebrate accomplishments of the ReConnect program and neighborhood—such as harvest potlucks, screenings of documentary films and farm stands
• Coordinate events that bring together folks from our neighborhood and other parts of the City—like volunteer workdays and Open Houses at the ReSource