Seasons Greetings!

On Tuesday, November 29th, a group of more than 70 people came together for the first Public Working Meeting of the Gravois-Jefferson Historic Neighborhoods Planning Initiative! Hosted at Thomas Dunn Learning Center, the group of residents, business owners, local developers, elected officials, and other stakeholders used the theme of “People” to brainstorm strategies, goals and partners for a variety of focus areas. We began with a Presentation, then broke into small groups to brainstorm ideas. Additionally, participants reviewed a draft of the Neighborhood Vision Statement, developed by the Steering Committee the week prior.

We learned that meetings are most effective and appreciated when residents have the opportunity to collaborate with their neighbors. Those who attended the meeting liked the opportunity to brainstorm in small groups; in the future, we will ensure these opportunities exist at all meetings.

We have organized the strategies, goals and partners based on the focus area it pertains to:

• In the Health and Safety focus area, our major takeaways are:
  • The need to reduce crime; community-grown solutions will help
  • Increase access to healthy foods and health services
  • Desire for a safe and engaged community
  • Click HERE to see data related to Health & Safety. Click HERE to see all of the input we received about this topic during the Working Meeting.
• In the Youth and Families focus area, our major takeaways are:
  • Connecting schools with community to improve youth opportunities
  • Bringing neighbors together to make change (block parties, neighborhood watch, etc)
  • We have strong partners
  • Click HERE to see data related to Youth & Families. Click HERE to see all of the input we received about this topic during the Working Meeting.
• In the Economic Development and Prosperity focus area, our major takeaways are:
  • Support local, youth, refugee, and minority-owned business & entrepreneurship
  • Program to provide financial literacy & job training
  • Policies to mitigate gentrification and build wealth for low-income residents
  • Click HERE to see data related to Economic Development & Prosperity. Click HERE to see all of the input we received about this topic during the Working Meeting.
• In the additional seven focus area, our major takeaways are:
  • Maintain and promote cultural and artistic life
  • Hold landlords accountable and ensure high-quality, affordable housing
  • Policies and programs to solve dumping and trash issues
  • Ensure neighborhoods are environmentally-friendly
  • Click HERE to see data related to:
    • Education and Training
    • Housing
    • Empowerment, Civic Engagement and Equity
    • Public Space and Urban Landscape
    • Mobility, Circulation and Transportation
    • Arts and Culture
    • Air, Water, Energy, Sanitation and Environment
  • Click HERE to see all of the input we received about these topics during the Working Meeting

Draft Vision Statement

“Our vision is for accessible, sustainable, inclusive neighborhoods where families and individuals thrive in a diverse and historically rich, engaged community.”

If you weren’t able to make it, we have developed online versions of our activities that can be accessed here. We will also be doing this outreach on-the-ground in order to ensure we are capturing as many voices as possible, including those who may not have access to the internet. Thank you for your continued support and participation in the Gravois-Jefferson Historic Neighborhoods Plan! We look forward to seeing you at our next Working Meeting at the end of January. Until then, Happy Holidays!