Community aligns at yearly conference

Community organizers and citizens from across Baltimore met at Charles Commons on Saturday to discuss citywide issues during the second annual Neighborhood Institute.

The Institute was organized by Greater Homewood Community Corporation (GHCC), and included representatives from communities such as Waverly, Ednor Gardens-Lakeside, Fells Prospect, Hampden and Charles Village. Students were also encouraged to attend, though they didn't comprise a large turnout.

GHCC was founded in 1969, with partners Union Memorial Hospital, Johns Hopkins University and Loyola College. GHCC now covers 40 neighborhoods and approximately 10 percent of the city's population in working to provide programs in education, economic development and community revitalization for Baltimore residents.

The theme of this year's Neighborhood Institute was "Strong Neighborhoods, Sustainable City," addressing in their opening speech that "from quality public schools to housing code enforcement, strong neighborhoods are the backbone of a city that is strong for the long term."

The Neighborhood Institute began with a panel discussion. Panelists included Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld III; Laura Weeldreyer, deputy director of the Baltimore City Public School System; Mark Sissman, president of Healthy Neighborhoods; Valentina Ukwuoma, director of the Bureau of Solid Waste for the Department of Public Works; and Sarah Zaleski, sustainability coordinator for the Office of Sustainability. Joseph McNeely, a veteran community organizer and executive director of the Central Baltimore Partnership moderated the session.

After a question-and-answer session, the meeting broke into smaller groups that focused on specific issues. Topics included "Call It In and Kick 'Em Out: Using Drug Nuisance Abatement Procedures In Your Neighborhood," "Foreclosure 411: What Neighborhood Leaders Need To Know" and "I Dream of Green: Imagining, Organizing and Funding Neighborhood Greening Projects."

Laura Weeldryer, newly appointed Deputy Chief of Staff for Baltimore City Public Schools, spoke about the transformation schools, charter schools and magnet schools in Baltimore that legislators hope will revolutionize the historically low-performing school system. Transformation schools - a new concept to Baltimore - allow administrators to design the school. Typically, transformation schools have included 80 to 100 students in grades 6-12 in a college or career preparatory atmosphere.

GHCC Executive Director Karen Stokes praised new Superintendent Andres Alonzo for his work in spearheading the "major revitalization of the school system," calling him a visionary who aimed to change "both the perception and the reality of the [Baltimore public school] system."

Longtime Baltimore resident Alfred Wainwright called the Baltimore school system "deceptive, never as simple as merely just a good or bad school," and Stokes responded that GHCC was aiming to improve the entire school system, not just the selective and charter schools.

Marsha Hairston, a retired Baltimore schoolteacher, taught for several years at nearby Margaret Brent Elementary, on 26th and St. Paul Streets. Hairston explained that the economic diversity of the Baltimore school system is often its downfall, recalling that many of the children she taught who were homeless and often on welfare.

The recent surge in crime rates in Baltimore was quickly brought up as a topic of discussion. Though students and residents alike had expressed concern over the recent crime outbreaks in Charles Village, the attendees of the Neighborhood Institute were nearly unanimous in their opinion that these were isolated events.

Victor Corbin, Fells Prospect Community Association president, said "grime and crime" were the top two problems for Baltimore residents. Furthermore, Corbin said, the two go hand-in-hand, as a dirty neighborhood quickly becomes a dangerous one.

Veteran Baltimore policeman John Walter said, "When the community is involved and invested, and willing to work with police, it is a win-win situation for everybody." Walter worked closely with Hopkins in training security officers, and applauded the efforts of the university to make the area a safer one for students and residents alike.

Stokes noted the "ring of security" that she saw in Charles Village as a result of Hopkins's presence in the community and said "if you're [a resident of Charles Village], one incident is too many."

Numerous attendees discussed the role that Hopkins plays in the neighborhood - both positive and negative. Charles Village Civic Association member Sharon Guida said that she saw Hopkins as a "neighbor, a partner and a resource for crime prevention in Charles Village."

Guida said she saw Baltimore as a center of experiential learning for the students at Hopkins and other local universities, and GHCC representatives encouraged the students in attendance to become involved in outreach programs.

Speakers at the Neighborhood Institute overwhelmingly emphasized that residents must take personal responsibility in improving their neighborhoods.

Joseph McNeely held a group discussion on "Neighborhood-Friendly Development." He came to Baltimore in 1970 to work for a firm that protested highway development.

McNeely encouraged people to "do the unexpected and make noise when you're unhappy with what is going on." McNeely and other presenters listed the many resources Baltimore residents have, citing allies such as the Community Law Center. One of the allies mentioned for Baltimoreans was, incidentally, Hopkins itself.

Many attendees encouraged the University to look past Charles Village in their quest to revitalize the neighborhood, but praised the work the University has already done in developing productive neighborhood alliances.

"The success of Charles Village is all about collaborations and partnerships," Stokes said.