Design Charette |
On February 22 - 24, 2002, residents and business owners in the Renascence area near the Detroit and Central Avenue intersection came together at Central United Methodist Church and drafted a new vision for their community. Over 200 homeowners, professionals, concerned neighbors, and University of Toledo students spent three days taking an intensive look at the existing intersection and adjoining neighborhoods. 
Before the planning sessions began, residents were asked to fill out a survey that would help guide the workshops. It was discovered that, while the majority of residents have a lot of pride in their neighborhood, they also think it would be hard to attract new businesses and residents to their area. When asked what their "dream" commercial additions were, a hardware store, a bookstore, video rental shop, and sit-down restaurant were most often named. Additionally, a daycare and youth center, along with a senior center for residents were identified as desirable additions, along with recreational areas like parks and ball courts. 
On Friday, February 22nd, a daytime walking tour of the area allowed students, residents, and professionals to see first-hand what they were dealing with, and to get a good feel for the desolation and abandoned feeling at the intersection.That evening, business owners, landlords, homeowners, renters, political candidates, and city officials gathered at the church to get the ball rolling and lined up at the microphone to give ideas, complain, preach, and share their dreams and fears. 
By 10:00 a..m. Saturday, people again filled the church and broke into three groups to more easily focus discussion. Throughout the morning, television crews interviewed the participants for Saturday night news shows. By mid-afternoon, after a communal lunch and informal sharing of ideas, the groups started to put their vision and ideas on paper in preparation for a public presentation on Sunday. 
Day 3 of the workshop began at noon on Sunday. The previous day's ideas were fleshed out into final visions and entered into computers for the presentation. At 6:00 p.m., the visions were unveiled to a crowd of over 70 people. Each report was different, but all shared the common theme of recreating a community.  Television crews were back on hand to do live reports and record the event. Even though the evening was scheduled to end by 7:30 p.m., participants stayed for a long time reveling in the camaraderie that hads been created, and congratulated each other on their work.
Neighborhoods In Partnership is working with the neighborhood groups to determine the next steps in the process, and will plan future working sessions and help determine concrete designs and ideas for the future. The event was sponsored by Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, Central United Methodist Church, The Urban Affairs Center of the University of Toledo, and Neighborhoods In Partnership. |
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