“Austin is becoming a powerful community of civically engaged residents, responsive and accountable institutions, and highly collaborative private, public, nonprofit, and faith-based leaders…We will revitalize the image and spirit of Austin by promoting assets such as our historic housing, creating a healthy community, and building a more robust environment for local arts and culture.” From the Austin Coming Together (ACT) website.
“This is how capacity building at the community level is taken to the next level. By bringing together stakeholders, residents, and civic leaders communities can define a vision for themselves in their neighborhood, and feel empowered to take ownership over their futures,” said Jake Ament, director of LISC Chicago’s Neighborhood Network.
ACT was formed by the community and 50 organizations. It is the organization responsible for beginning conversations with the community. Through these discussions, they were able to have LISC draft a Quality of Life Plan (QLP) for Austin. Members of the neighborhood gave their input on what they wanted the community to look like.
According to LISC’s website:
QLPs are visions for a community’s future created and owned by the community and have served as a guide for investments and actions. During the process, LISC provides capacity building, technical, and financial support to its community partners.
In December 2018, the QLP was published for Austin. In 2019, they “hit the ground running,” and in 2020, the program came to a “screeching halt,” due to COVID. Fortunately, they were able to switch gears and hold their meetings virtually so they could move forward with the QLP.
ACT was founded in 2010. The organization formed 23 strategies with 84 actions across seven issue areas. The QLP was enacted between 2019 and continues through 2023, The seven-issue areas covered in the QLP are the community narrative, education, housing, youth empowerment, economic development, public safety, and civic engagement.
The organization is value-based. “[Their] core values include commitment, unity, transparency, community, and action. Unity is the idea of us coming together, which is found in our name, ‘Austin Coming Together.’ Also, Austin is segmented into these different sub-neighborhoods. It is the second-largest neighborhood in Chicago,” JaVon Moore said.
Only 55.4% of Austin residents have easy access to fresh produce. ACT is working to make a difference in the grocery options for residents. Austin has 90,000 residents and only two grocery stores. It is the second-largest population in Chicago.
The organization has started a community garden in northeast Austin and has plans to start a hydroponic garden so residents can grow fresh produce all year round. They want to plant more than 20 community gardens.
Almost half of the independent small grocers in the community do not offer fresh produce.
In Austin, 40.3% of households make less than $25,000. Over 81% of households are African American, and 37% of residents are 25 and under.
One acre of land houses 521 residents, compared to 205 residents in Chicago per acre.
A Day in the Life of an Austin Resident
“I am blessed and privileged to be able to have sustained employment, not necessarily that I don’t have food insecurity. my neighbors might suffer from that. Since the evils of slavery, there has been a bad taste in the mouth I believe many of us, unconsciously, as it relates to healthier foods.”
“It began with the evils of slavery and continues today,” JaVon Morre said.
Dearra Williams stated, “I go outside of Austin for food and healthcare and we were conditioned and are still conditioned to live this way. We spend about 80% of our disposable income [in] neighboring communities. It’s not like we don’t have the money, it’s that we don’t have the resources.”
Written by Jeanette Vietti
Source:
Interview with JaVon Morre and Dearra Williams with ACT on 03/15/2022
