In true Brownsville fashion, it all started with a fiesta. On September 7, 2016, The Housing Authority of the City of Brownsville (HACB) held an outdoor Choice Neighborhoods (CN) kick-off celebration attended by over 500 local residents. Since then, over 50 meetings, events and activities have generated incredible excitement and momentum towards positive change in the Buena Vida Choice Neighborhood. Along the way, significant local capacity has been built that will ensure implementation success.
HACB and the City of Brownsville (COB) have partnered to lead efforts to transform the Buena Vida public housing complex (Buena Vida Development) and the surrounding Buena Vida neighborhood into a vibrant and resilient community of opportunity and choice.
Please click here to download the Draft Plan.
A dedication ceremony for Grayslake’s new Gelatin Park took place on Saturday, November 3rd. Camiros was hired by the Village of Grayslake to develop conceptual design schemes for Gelatin Park which included preserving the former factory’s famous smokestack, a multi-purpose pavilion, a sledding hill, an observational tower, abundant green space, and more. Although the scenery surrounding the dedication ceremony did not contain these additional features illustrated in Camiros’ visioning, Mayor Rhett Taylor expects the park to expand its list of amenities overtime after the grass is fully grown and the other basics are completed.
The Bowling Green Community Action Plan, approved by City Council only a few months back, is already generating positive momentum. A CAP recommendation about establishing a micro-grant program to implement improvements and activities that advance the CAP’s vision was announced at the Monday (May 21, 2018) City Council meeting. A budget of $5,000 from the City’s annual budget will go toward establishing and making these grants available to residents and organizations.
Read more: “BG launches micro grant program”
(Note: Image featured above is a draft site plan of where Clark Commons will be built and not the actual plan)
Implementation of the SOUTH FLINT COMMUNITY PLAN has achieved a significant milestone. The Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) has awarded a nine percent low income housing tax credit (translating to roughly $1.5 million) to assist in the construction of mixed-income housing along North Saginaw Street as identified in the South Flint Community Plan. According to the East Village article linked to below, this development will contain 62 units, 39 of which will be for residents of the public housing site, Atherton East.
Read More: “Atherton East replacement project moving forward with $1.5 million state tax credit”
The final draft of Bowling Green’s Community Action Plan has been released and can be viewed at the project website (https://www.bgohio.org/community-action-plan/). Camiros has worked closely with members of the Ohioan community and partners from Bowling Green State University (BGSU) for over 18 months, developing an action-oriented document that details seven planning priorities, each supported by implementable strategies that have been modeled to catalyze revitalization within neighborhoods around BGSU and advance the vision of the entire community. A highlight from this project includes being honored with “Best Practice” for the Court Street Connects (CSC) Festival awarded by the American Planning Association – Ohio Chapter. A video explaining the project and showing highlights of CSC can be seen HERE.
