Home Editor NPC Executive Director’s Column: October/November 2019

NPC Executive Director’s Column: October/November 2019

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NPC Executive Director’s Column: October/November 2019
Abha Thakkar

A successful summer with our partners

The Northside Planning Council has been helping to convene a collaboration of nonprofit partners and service providers through the Northside Safe & Thriving Community Initiative, a grant program administered by the City since 2017. With the incessant drumbeat of bad news in the citywide media, I want to make sure our readers know of all the great work being done right here in our neighborhood.

Hot! Hot! Hot!

We kicked off the summer with an Increase the Peace event at Warner Park and followed it up with four block parties at Ridgecrest and Parkcrest Apartments and in the Kipling and Brentwood neighborhoods — all during the hottest weeks of the summer. Service providers also supported block parties at Kennedy Heights and Vera Court, as well as an end-of-the-summer event hosted by the Mendota Community School.

We had a large number of partners help us make these events fun and memorable: Warner Park Community Recreation Center, Lakeview Lutheran Church, Briarpatch Youth Services, Willy Street Co-op, FEED Bakery Catering, Healthy Food For All, Lake View Community School, Madison Public Library and our Lakeview Branch Library, Madison Starlings youth volleyball club, Northside Early Childhood Zone, The River Food Pantry, Art & Design Works, Joining Forces for Families, the Northside Action Team, and the Neighborhood Intervention Program.

These parties served as an excellent placemaking experience for those neighborhoods and gave us all the opportunity to get to know more residents and connect them to various opportunities on the Northside, including our new text broadcasting service (see page 12).

Redirecting youth energy

In mid-July we became aware of daily escalations with youth at the McDonald’s on Dryden Drive. The leadership of the North District Police approached our collaborative to explore ways that we could bring service providers to the scene to help diffuse the growing conflicts there.  Haywood Simmons with Coach’s Club responded by bringing adult staff there everyday with jump ropes, boxing gloves, drums and food. They did a tremendous job of calming the situation, and the daily police calls ceased. Thanks also to North District Police Captain Brian Ackeret for connecting Haywood with funding for the food through the Madison Police Foundation.

Taking back the tunnel

Through the Safe & Thriving funds, NPC was able to provide resources for Dane Arts Mural Arts to create some stunning mural work in the tunnel under Northport Drive at School Road. City staff in Engineering and Traffic Engineering really stepped up by replacing lights and providing a base coat of paint and the generators needed for spray painting. This tunnel is critical for young children walking to Mendota Elementary, and, together, we were able to make it a safer, more inviting experience for them. 

Self-leadership skills for our youth

We followed up the successes of the summer with a Youth De-escalation training held by Haywood Simmons with Coach’s Club at Lakeview Lutheran Church, also funded through NPC’s Safe & Thriving grant. It’s an opportunity for youth who experience the chronic stressors of poverty and racism to learn skills to help themselves remain calm and mindful in conflict situations. The training had slots for 10 youth but was so popular that we will find a way to hold more classes in the future.

Way to go Warner!

Terrence Thompson, as the Warner Park Community Recreation Center director, has made tremendous strides in establishing teen programming in the center’s gym and game room. In August, Madison Parks and the Madison Parks Foundation raised $40,000 for KNOW (Kids Need Opportunities at Warner), which will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Foundation to total $80,000 for youth programming. We couldn’t be more grateful for the excellent work Terrence is doing there and for the support he’s receiving from Parks and the Foundation.  

The Northside Counts!

NPC was awarded $20,000 by the City to coordinate a collaborative endeavor with over a dozen organizations to reach hard-to-count populations for the 2020 Census. More on that soon!

We are not alone 

Not everyone has the privilege of seeing these little victories up close like I do, but it’s important to note that they are happening and that we are fortunate to have a dedicated, intelligent group of resident leaders, public servants and nonprofit staff with a broad skill set and deep understanding of the challenges we face.