Econ Focus
Family Portrait
Life is hard in one of Baltimore's toughest neighborhoods. But for Janice Walker, it's home
By Charles Gerena
Making Progress
Here are a few of the public-private efforts that have addressed Sandtown-Winchester's physical, economic, and social capital needs for more than a decade, and what they have accomplished so far. The Enterprise Foundation has played a major role in many of these efforts.
| Program | Description | Successes Achieved | Challenges Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|
| BUILD/ Enterprise Nehemiah Development | Joint venture formed in 1989 by the Enterprise Foundation and Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD) to develop and rehabilitate housing in Sandtown | More than 500 homes have been built or renovated throughout the neighborhood | Completing Phases II and III of a 134-home project to fill in gaps between existing projects |
| Community Building in Partnership | Formed in early 1990s to implement community plan to improve conditions in Sandtown | Community center offers job training, after-school, and other programs; organization's dozens of initiatives have directly employed 250 residents and helped find work for another 500 people | Building additional community organization capacity to help reach critical mass of redevelopment and achieve "neighborhood transformation" |
| New Song Urban Ministries | Founded by Mark Gornik and Allan and Susan Tibbels in 1988 as a faith-based, holistic approach to neighborhood development | Formed Sandtown Habitat for Humanity, which has rehabilitated and built 200 homes within a 15-block area; also started health clinic, learning center, senior center, and arts program | Spreading current successes into other parts of the neighborhood |
| Sandtown-Winchester Neighborhood Transformation Initiative | Enterprise Foundation and co-founder, James Rouse; former mayor Kurt Schmoke and City of Baltimore; and residents worked together in early 1990s to draft a comprehensive community plan targeting eight areas: physical development, economic development, health, education, family support, substance abuse, crime and safety, and community pride and spirit | Formed several organizations to implement plan, including Community Building in Partnership | see Community Building in Partnership above |
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