At the end of the evening, we joined the groups together to hear a presentation by Southern California Associates of Governments about proposed plans to bring a public transit project (think train, light rail, etc.) through Bellflower, connecting LA to Santa Ana. Because there is talk of bringing a train stop to the north end of Bellflower's downtown, which borders both Eucalyptus and Oak neighborhoods, we felt this information is extremely relevant to neighbors. One neighbor shared her excitement and concern for the new project. She knew the train would be good for the community, but since Bellflower doesn't have any form of rent control, she was worried that a train stop close by could raise property value and rent, resulting in many families being displaced from our neighborhoods. The presenter validated her comment and said that is precisely why the neighbors need to be involved at this early stage. She encouraged them to start talking with the city about their fears. We decided to host a second meeting with neighbors to strategize how to connect best with the city about their concerns.
Neighbors Giving Back
We registered 35+ families for the Christmas Store last night. Individuals, local churches, businesses and organizations donate brand new gifts to stalk the shelves of the Christmas Store. Registered neighbors come and shop, buying presents at 90-95% off the original price. Then, 100% of the money that comes in goes to a good cause, which is determined by the neighbors. After some discussion about a few causes to support, they voted to send the money to help build a well in Africa to provide clean water in a village.
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| The neighbors voted to send the proceeds to help build a well in Africa to provide clean water. We're going to send this picture with the check in December. Look how proud and excited everybody is in this picture! |
1 comment:
Your neighborhood sounds as though you're very smart about community development process. Talking in advance about impacts of light rail or other such rapid transit on rental structure is really a good idea.
The planning, engineering and construction of these projects consume years from start to finish, so you have time to deal with the social impacts if you keep up your pace of community meetings.
Being near transit can be a wonderful lifestyle but as is wisely pointed out, you have to be prepared for additional demand for housing.
Good luck to you!
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