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  Neighborhoods and Quality of Life Focus Group Orientation Binder

  Ten Input Ideas for Neighborhoods and Quality of Life Thousands of ideas were generated and all will be considered by the Focus Group.
  
  1  Lestiff - Arts Festival.
  Our neighborhoods need modernization, increased parks and recreation and increased small business involvement in the community, less chains. Less traffic issues, better lit streets.
  2  Andrea - Youth Forum.
  Affordable community centers with youth activities day care and educational programs (after school) and free health clinics (maybe involve community churches)
  3  Shumaker Place - Neighborhood Survey.
  Housing for people of various incomes and life stages that is attractive, safe, and affordable within each neighborhood around the city.
  4  Clintonville - Neighborhood Survey.
  NEIGHBORLINESS. A cordial attitude and interest in the neighborhood, while respecting one another’s privacy needs and boundaries. We don’t get to choose our neighbors, but we need them.
  5  Franklinton - Neighborhood Survey.
  The Home Again program and other entities are making an impact in Franlinton, but the sheer volume of vacant and dilapidated structures held privately is burying us. The carrot or stick needs to be applied to those owners.
  6  Thomas T. - Linden Festival.
  Our community needs a mixture of residential, retail, commercial, recreational living in close proximity as well as a signature park and public space where the community can gather and enjoy themselves.
  7  Alan R. - College Symposium.
  It is important to maintain and further enhance the distinct personalities of individual neighborhoods through allowing them to pursue unique programs like the Short North arches or the brick streets in German Village.
  8  Evangeline - Greek Festival.
  Don’t allow certain parts of town to die! People need access to transportation, shopping, doctor, grocery store. If they don’t have that the neighborhood will die, then desperate people are left behind and they do dumb things.
  9  Hungarian Village - Neighborhood Survey.
  Get rid of abandoned houses. Impose fines on the owners of houses and vacant, uncared for lots, and use the money to fix up or demolish them.
  10  Westgate - Neighborhood Survey.
  Community involvement - active concerned community members who care what happens in their neighborhood.

Neighborhoods and Quality of Life

Focus Area Members:

Member	Organization
Carol Stewart (Chair)	Franklinton Area Commission
Dave Paul (Chair)	Northland Community Council
Rep. Tracy Heard (Chair)	State of Ohio
Robert Patterson (Chair)	Marion Franklin CA
Annie Womack	King-Lincoln - Long St.
Chris Gawronski	Clintonville AC
Dan Province	Far North Col. Community Coalition
Danny Popp	North Linden AC
Debra Diggs	Southside CAN
Don Geiner	Italian Village/Short North
Elwood Rayford	Northeast
Gary Baker	Greater Hilltop AC
George Holliman	Driving Park AC
George Walker Jr.	South Linden
Joaquin Serantes	University Area Commission
John Ehlers	Northwest CA
Kathleen Bailey	Near East AC
Linda Henry	Vassor Village/South Side Neighbors Against Crime
Matthew Vaccaro	Milo-Grogan
Michael Wilkos	United Way
Mike McKay	Westland AC
Ralph Horn	Southwest AC
Tiffany White	North Central AC
Valerie Toliver	5th By Northwest

Meetings:	Work Session 1 - Notes
	Work Session 2 - Notes
	Work Session 3 - Notes

Focus Area Description: The health of neighborhoods directly impacts the viability of the entire city. Quality of life issues related to neighborhoods will be the focus of this focus group, including infrastructure needs, housing, parks and recreation, and neighborhood business districts. Secondary issues may include walkability and connectivity among neighborhoods.

Key Question: What would make your neighborhood great?

Public Input about the Focus Area: Residents feel that Columbus has strong neighborhoods that can be made stronger through increased citizen participation. Whether discussing block watches, community policing or community activitism, respondents note that people make the difference in neighborhoods. Beyond involvement, residents want to see a central public gathering space and signature park or green space for every community. Additionally, designing and encouraging walkability in communities is another major aspect to creating a great neighborhood. This encourages the blossoming of local businesses while improving the health of citizens. Finally, many respondents see vacant and deteriorating houses as a major problem for the city. Comments advocate for stricter code enforcement, swift action against negligent landowners and better programs to turn around vacant housing.

Public Input Themes for the Focus Area:

1. Provide safety through block watches, neighborhood police communication and traffic control measures. Respondents feel that public safety has a major impact on the quality of their communities and neighborhoods. Many residents feel that the community can play a proactive role through block watches and other citizen self policing measures. In addition, residents want to see more traffic calming to slow traffic in their communities.
2. Promote public improvement projects, local business investment and walkabilty within neighborhoods. Many citizens feel that a major contributing factor to the quality of life in their neighborhoods is to have local businesses within walkable neighborhoods. Respondents want to be able to walk around the corner for everyday needs and support local businesses. Many feel this would also help improve the health of the community and make it a safer place.
3. Address housing affordablity issues and penalize negligent landowners for poor maintenance of their properties. Citizens cited the vacant or deteriorating housing as a major negative impact on neighborhoods. Even when only one house is in disrepair, it can harm the whole neighborhood. Respondents want to see an aggressive cleanup program where landowners are forced to improve their properties and vacant housing turned around quickly.
4. Promote greenspace, public art and community clean up projects. Several important attributes for a successful neighborhood were public spaces, green space, and community art to differentiate the neighborhood. These spaces give communities places to gather and offer recreational opportunities for community members. Similarly, public art can distinguish a community and provide benefits to businesses around it.
5. Encourage citizen participation and diversity through volunteerism and cultural education. The most commonly cited attribute of a great community was community member involvement. Contributors see neighborhood involvement as essential in creating great neighborhoods. Many comments are directed at improving community involvement through volunteer recruitment, improved public communication and neighborhood organization.

Think Outside the Box...