On Saturday, June 8, a crowd of 200 neighborhood residents and community partners gathered at the lot on the corner of E. 110th and Woodland to celebrate the Woodhill Build the Block Neighborhood Party. The party was organized by CWRU's National Initiative on Mixed-Income Communities (NIMC), which conducts research and provides evaluation and technical assistance to nonprofits, private developers, government agencies and foundations. Learn more about the Block Party and the NIMC below.
Building a foundation for belonging: Right across from the old Woodhill Homes Estates is a lot on the corner of E. 110th and Woodland, where a pastel mural with the word “Dream” is painted on the wall. On Saturday, June 8th, underneath the Dream sign, people danced, mingled, and laughed as they came together to celebrate their community.
Purple, orange, green, and yellow neighborhood street signs line the perimeter of the lot, with large tents behind them. A local retired art teacher led a canvas painting activity, where children and parents were able to create their vision for public art in the community. A neighbor wanting to own a vacant lot connected with the new Cleveland Land Bank manager. Kids laughed as they threw a football around with their local community development corporation community organizer. Local organizations, City department employees, and neighbors shared a meal under the sun and announced their commitment to their community.
Celebrating moments of connection like these help create a sense of belonging and trust, which can lead to continued investment in a community. As an impact research center, the National Initiative on Mixed-Income Communities values fostering a sense of belonging and interconnectedness in the work they do.
Build the Block Recap and Background: The neighborhood party was born out of the Commitment Campaign, which is a part of the larger Choice Neighborhoods Initiative, a $45 million Housing and Urban Development federal grant awarded to the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority for work in the Woodhill-Buckeye neighborhood. The campaign aims to address three core resident priorities - improving safety, beautifying the neighborhood, and increasing social connection - by engaging and activating the City of Cleveland and community partners to fulfill their leverage commitments from the Choice grant to the neighborhood.
NIMC organized the Woodhill Build the Block Neighborhood Party. The event celebrated fulfilled commitments, connected neighbors and partner organizations, and highlighted new commitments made by partner organizations, City departments, and local community members. The event also publicly launched the 4 Critical Community Improvement projects, which are programs aimed at revitalizing the neighborhood through public art, digital connectivity, home repair, and small business economic developmental assistance.
These actions created an overwhelming sense of belonging and inspired community members and partners to commit to furthering their involvement in the community, to not give up, and to help host and attend more events.
From Wamelink to Kennedy, Rosehill to Crestwood, Woodland to Woodstock and Buckeye to Woodhill, we want to thank everyone who came out and celebrated with us and thank you for helping to “build the block.”
Thank you to the partners who helped make this event a success: Burten, Bell, Carr, Inc., the City of Cleveland Parks and Recreation, Western Reserve Land Conservancy, DigitalC, LAND Studio, Habitat for Humanity, Neighborhood Connections, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, the Property Management and Community Life team at The Community Builders, the New Image Block Association, and New Vista Enterprises.
To learn more about the NIMC, Build the Block Neighborhood Party or the Commitment Campaign, reach out to Christina Vukovich at NIMC.