Message From the Executive Director
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Pam Kramer,
Executive Director |
There is so much to celebrate right now I don’t know where to begin. This issue is chock full of success stories, from national recognition for the Duluth Community Safety Initiative to the near completion of updated revitalization plans that will guide our neighborhoods over the next three to five years. We are busy getting ready for the fifth annual Connecting the Dots neighborhood celebration, where those plans will be revealed and residents will be asked to consider their roles in implementing them. Five new neighborhood heroes also will be honored. Impressive progress is being made in
Duluth. That was the word from national planning experts who revisited our city as a follow-up to a 2005 charrette (visioning process). We are proud of the work being done and the people and partners who make it possible. Some of these key people and organizations are featured below. Please take a moment to read this newsletter, and click links for more extensive versions of stories.
Duluth Community Safety Initiative Earns Top National Award
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Kris Ridgewell (West Duluth CDC), Debbie Isabell-Nelson (NHS), Cliff Knettel (NHS) and Duluth Police Chief Gordon Ramsay |
It takes a strong, coordinated effort by local police, residents, business owners, landlords, and other stakeholders to reduce crime, eliminate blight, and renew economic vitality in at-risk neighborhoods. That successful approach recently earned lead partners in the Duluth Community Safety Initiative a prestigious national award and $30,000 to continue their work. The Duluth program was chosen from a nationwide pool of more than 700 applicants.
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Get Connected at Connecting the Dots
 | Join us at Connecting the Dots! |
Don’t miss the fifth annual Connecting the Dots neighborhood celebration, Saturday, November 5, 2011, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Clyde Park in Duluth. Enjoy a free continental
breakfast, celebrate neighborhood heroes, and review drafts of updated neighborhood revitalization plans. You may discover ways you can help bring them to life! More than 50 information booths will be set up to connect you with community resources. Bring the family. There will be free, supervised activities for kids.
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Back to the Future … Duluth Charrette Revisited
What a difference six years can make! Just ask national urban planning experts who participated in Duluth’s East Downtown, Hillside, and Waterfront Charrette back in 2005 and recently revisited the community. Many recommendations developed in the original visioning process are being followed, including new land-use zoning regulations, investment in a downtown entertainment district, skywalk extensions, and plans for waterfront development. The visiting experts from the University of Miami School of Architecture’s Knight Program in
Community Building toured the study area and participated in special meetings and a public forum. These events were held to celebrate progress and identify ways to keep the momentum going.
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Pam Kramer, executive director of Duluth LISC, is among three area women being honored by the YWCA Duluth as 2011 Women of Distinction. The YWCA is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity. The annual awards recognize and honor women who have made significant contributions to the community. Other recipients are Gwen Updegraff, a Duluth attorney, and Dr. Joycelyn Dorscher, director of the Center for American Indian and Minority Health at the University
of Minnesota Duluth. In addition, CHUM's Congregational Outreach Director, Elizabeth Olson is being honored as an Emerging Leader. The awards luncheon will be held November 2 at the DECC from 11:45 to noon. Congratulations to Pam and Liz!
Jeff Corey Honored by The McKnight Foundation
 | Jeff Corey, Executive Director, Northern Communities Land Trust |
Congratulations to Jeff Corey, head of the Northern Communities Land Trust (NCLT), one of six outstanding Minnesotans to receive a 2011 Virginia McKnight Binger Award in Human Service. The $10,000 awards honor Minnesotans who give their time to improve the lives of people in their communities and who demonstrate the difference one person can make in helping others. Jeff’s tireless commitment has helped hundreds of Duluth
area residents gain dignity and build equity through homeownership. Northern Communities Land Trust is a longtime partner of Duluth LISC and is a core member of the At Home in Duluth collaborative.
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Minnesota Power has been an ongoing, major donor of Duluth LISC for many years, providing vital financial and leadership support through corporate giving and the Minnesota Power Foundation. “Over the years,
we have proudly invested in Duluth LISC’s efforts to promote neighborhood revitalization by improving workforce skills, increasing business development, spurring housing development and redevelopment, and advancing community safety initiatives,” said Peggy Hanson, community relations and Minnesota Power Foundation director, who serves on Duluth LISC’s Local Advisory Board.
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Seeds of Success Garden in Lincoln Park |
Two programs that improve the environment and create green jobs in Duluth have earned Community Action Duluth a prestigious Innovation Award in the 2011 Minnesota Nonprofit Awards of Mission and Excellence, presented by the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and MAP for Nonprofits.
Seeds of Success, an urban agriculture program, and Stream Corps, which works to restore streams that pass through Duluth, were cited as examples of Community Action Duluth’s innovative approach to solving community challenges. Employees working in both programs benefit from Community Action Duluth’s Financial Opportunity Center
, funded through a grant from LISC’s Social Innovation Fund. Congratulations to our friends at Community Action Duluth, a core member of the At Home in Duluth collaborative!
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 | A gentle, joyful moment |
Think big. That is what Center City Housing Corp. (CCHC) is doing these days. CCHC has steadily been expanding into new areas of supportive housing. Last year, it acquired properties and programs formerly run by Women’s Community Development Organization. Building on the success of its New San Marco Apartments for individuals dealing with chronic alcoholism, CCHC is developing similar facilities in St. Cloud and Rochester.
The organization is now partnering with Churches United in Ministry and Northern Communities Land Trust to develop a 44-unit family apartment building with six emergency shelter units for families in Duluth’s Central Hillside. The development represents a growing niche for CCHC and is a logical next step.
CCHC’s interest and success in developing housing for some of Duluth’s most vulnerable residents has led to a growing role with Duluth LISC and its partners. The organization recently became a core member of the At Home in Duluth collaborative.
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 | DEEP's Mike Braun conducts energy audit |
A brand new nonprofit will soon join the At Home in Duluth core group, bringing a proven history of expertise in energy-efficient housing and green jobs to the collaborative. Ecolibrium3 is a spinoff of Common Ground Construction, a nonprofit affiliate of Northern Communities Land Trust, a nonprofit that specializes in green affordable housing. The new nonprofit is focused on increasing
environmental and economic sustainability of the community through the Duluth Energy Efficiency Program (DEEP), creation of public environmental programs, and demonstration of effective green development strategies. Equilibrium3 CEO Jodi Slick says joining At Home in Duluth is a natural choice. “We share the group’s philosophy that you have to balance social, environmental, and economic needs to build sustainable communities.”
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LISC Federal Policy Team Lobbies for Vital Funding
A vital funding source that helps build the capacity of local community development organizations could face severe cuts. Since 1998, Duluth LISC has helped bring $2,835,000 in U. S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 4 funds to Duluth, helping local partners better serve residents and revitalize neighborhoods. Now both houses of Congress are considering budgets that would slash annual funding for HUD Section 4 by one-third, from $50 million in fiscal year 2011 to $33.5 for 2012. The LISC Federal Policy Team is lobbying Congress to reconsider and to retain or increase funding for HUD Section 4 and other programs that support community development work. Several LISC initiatives could lose vital resources under current proposals, including the Sustainable Communities Initiative, Community Safety Initiative, Financial Opportunity Centers, New Markets Tax Credits, and programs that
help individuals, families, and communities thrive. Please contact your elected officials and let them know community development funding is important to you!
LISC AmeriCorps Is Lucky to Get “Rusty”
A familiar face is now coordinating Duluth LISC AmeriCorps. Sharra “Rusty” Brown, assistant program officer and long-time employee of Duluth LISC, is overseeing the program, which places LISC AmeriCorps members at partnering agencies in Duluth.
“My job is to help our local AmeriCorps members do the best job possible,” Brown said. “I remove barriers, help them understand community development work, and, hopefully, inspire them to proceed on a career path where those skills are used to build sustainable communities.”
Brown and several Duluth AmeriCorps members are currently in San Diego for the National AmeriCorps Leadership Conference.
Thank you and good luck to Nan Stubenvoll, who formerly coordinated the Duluth LISC AmeriCorps program. She leaves to pursue an exciting new chapter in her life and career! Nan has taken a short-term position with the Minnesota Department of Human Services, project managing a large Medicaid reform project related to aging and disabilities.
Welcome Lorrie Bradt—Duluth LISC Administrative Assistant
Duluth LISC is pleased to welcome Lorrie Bradt as its new administrative assistant. Bradt has previously held executive assistant and human resource positions in the Duluth area. She is looking forward to learning about the community development field.
Late Breaking News: Lutheran Social Service Planning Grant
Duluth LISC partner, Lutheran Social Service (LSS), will use a $7,500 planning grant from LISC's Green Development Center for its Center for Changing Lives, a proposed three-story, 30,000-square foot infill development with housing, comunity services, and office spaces that is currently in the pre-development stage. Located in one of the At Home in Duluth core neighborhoods, the Center will use green features such as rooftop gardens, passive heating and coolign, and an innovative stormwater management system.
The At Home in Duluth Collaborative is seeking to fill a full time AmeriCorps position to serve as a program assistant for community engagement and leadership development. The member will help create a citywide neighborhood leadership team for implementing the Neighborhood Revitalization Plans and be an integral part of a team working on community engagement, including among others, At Home
Neighborhood Revitalization Coordinators, members assigned to the Mayor’s Office for the Prosperity Agenda, and related community engagement/mobilizing efforts. The member will work under the direction of the Duluth LISC Program Officer. The United Way of Greater Duluth will serve as the sponsor for this position.
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