SoutheastNeighborhoodStrategicActionPlan_January1995_Current

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Southeast Quality of Life Strategic Neighborhood Action Plan generally of retired men and women, and stay -at -home -mothers and their children, both who are at home in the neighborhood during the day, and a third grouping of neighborhood businesses. Interaction between the groupings is a function of geographic proximity --- a stay at home mother lives next door to a retired person --- or another relationship such as marriage or church membership. Numerous things may cause these informal networks to breakdown. Fear to leave one's home, dual -income couples working outside the neighborhood, or language barriers may cause the breakdown of these informal means of communication. When the informal mechanisms are not enough, formal mechanisms may be put in place to establish lines of communication. One way to structure communication within a neighborhood is through Block Captains. A block captain takes charge of the flow of information for their block. He or she makes a point to know all those who live or work on that block making frequent informal contact with them. Captains ensure that residents are informed of neighborhood issues and gather comments and questions for neighborhood leadership. In addition they are a source of knowledge on the status of neighborhood problems and assets. Block Captains generally volunteer for their role but they may need to be encouraged. It is most useful if the position rotates but that is not necessary to the structure. Blocks may be square blocks or block faces or another grouping as appropriate. More important, the structure must be consistent and easily recognizable to residents of the block. A sign or flag may be an easy way to establish who Block Captains are at any given time. The Block Captain strategy is an easy one for success if the job has clear goals and guidelines and is not too time consuming for the Captain. One caution is that sometimes those who volunteer readily are already too busy and are not at home enough to be available as a neighborhood trouble-shooter. In that situation, someone who is at home more frequently but still feels comfortable out in the neighborhood may be a better choice. Another potential trouble point is when the issues gathered by the Block Captain fall on deaf ears. Success of this strategy requires active and sympathetic leadership recognized in the neighborhood organization.