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Home My WebLink AboutCSD-10-028 - Downtown East Ya Gotta Luv It ProjectREPORT REPORT TO: Community Services Committee DATE OF MEETING: April 12, 2010 SUBMITTED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director Community Programs and Services PREPARED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director Community Programs and Services WARD(S) INVOLVED: Ward 3 DATE OF REPORT: March 30, 2010 REPORT NO.: CSD-10-028 SUBJECT: DOWNTOWN EAST YA GOTTA LUV IT PROJECT - FINAL REPORT RECOMMENDATION: For information. BACKGROUND: The “Downtown East, Ya Gotta Luv It” project (DEYGLI) was developed to address negative perceptions about the east end of Kitchener’s downtown core. This project ran from 2004 to 2009 and built on a long history in the Cedar Hill and adjacent neighbourhoods, where citizens worked in partnership with the City of Kitchener, the Police, local schools and other stakeholders to address local issues related to community health, stability and safety. The project used a community development approach and included activities such as neighbourhood visioning, investigating new and/or enhanced bylaw enforcement standards and protocols, starting to work with landlords one on one (a landlords’ group), and hosting local community-building activities and events. The focus was most clearly on the Cedar Hill area; however it was discovered that the stated goals could very well have effect across other core neighbourhoods and the region. Council provided support for the DEYGLI project through the Community Development Infrastructure Program (CDIP) from 2004 to 2008. REPORT: The DEYGLI project team has provided City of Kitchener staff with the following documents including: A year end report for year five of the project, A strategic action plan summary and evaluation (year 1 to 5) An evaluation summation of the complete project (year 1 to 5), An executive summary of the complete project (year 1 to 5), The final financial and bank statements for the project, The “Who Ya Gonna Call Guide to Community Development”, and A local story called “The Tale of Two Brothers”. ì ó ï This staff report will share the year end report for year five of the project (Appendix A), the Executive Summary of the complete project (Appendix B) as well as the final financial and bank statements for the project (Appendix C). Three binders have been developed and will be distributed to the Mayor’s Office, Bylaw Division and Community Services, incorporating all documents, if members of Committee are interested in seeing a complete copy of all information provided. Staff can also provide copies of all the documentation at the request of Committee members. Summary highlights from year five of the DEYGLI project As outlined in the year end report for year five, four main areas were focused on in 2009. 1. Property Standards Bylaw – Work was being completed with the City of Kitchener and other representatives in the community which looked at the existing property standards by-law and what needed to be provided in terms of modifications, how it should be communicated to limit confusion etc. Part of this work included the development of a manual called “Property Standards 101” which outlined what constitutes a violation of the by-law, who to call, what steps Enforcement would take etc. A final draft of the bylaw has been completed and the manual is near completion. 2. Landlords – DEYGLI continued to work with landlords in the Downtown East and several other neighbourhoods in Kitchener dealing with issues of drug use and prostitution in their housing complexes. Although there have been successful changes in this area, there are some landlords who continue to experience problems in their housing units. However, landlords are now cooperative and responsive when the issue is brought to their attention. In some instances, professional support is sought out by the landlords for the tenant and removing the tenant from the unit is only done as a last resort. There is only one landlord in the Downtown East area who does not cooperate with the project, otherwise 27 landlords comprising of 200 units has worked with DEYGLI, at least once, on issues in their housing complexes. 3. Drugs and Prostitution – A diversion program for women who use prostitution to support their addiction has been completed and a report submitted to Waterloo Region Police Services. This program has now been moved to the Crowns office, who since has taken the lead. The program brings a number of services across the region together to support the reintegration of women, who use prostitution to support their addiction, back into main stream society. 4. Community Development – Besides the Downtown, DEYGLI worked with four communities outside of the downtown that were experiencing issues related to drugs, prostitution and mental illness. All four communities are taking their own direction to deal with their issues. One is working with police and other agencies to find community space to develop local programming, two other communities are working and meeting together to develop an identity/community logo, another is working on developing a document for the local community identifying Community Standards. The complete report for year five can be found in Appendix A of this staff report. Downtown East Ya Gotta Luv It Project Summation Evaluation – Executive Summary The complete Executive Summary for the DEYGLI Project Evaluation can be found in Appendix B. The following are highlights from the Executive Summary. Project Goals The project team report that all four goals for the DEYGLI project have been met, however some goals will require ongoing monitoring. The stated goals for the project were: ì ó î 1. To create projects that would help change the negative perceptions in the DEYGLI area; 2. To implement the provisions of the Downtown East Strategic Action Plan 26 objectives; 3. To take a more concentrated and pro-active approach to issues surrounding Landlords; and 4. To work with the Director of Enforcement, City of Kitchener to do a SWOT analysis of existing enforcement laws. Project Impacts Community members and community service providers were interviewed to determine the impacts of the project over the five years. Three specific questions were asked including: i) what has changed, ii) what has not changed, and iii) what were the lessons learned. Common themes emerged, identified on page 7 to 10 in the Executive Summary and include comments and change related to: Property Standards; The Kitchener Market; Businesses; Façade Improvement; Sense of Hope; Community Demographics; Criminal Activity; Landlord Project; Community Conduit/Catalyst; Service Provider Assistance; and Success Stories. Two key lessons were learned from this project that related to: i) the model used for community work in this project and ii) the network weaving created from this project. The model used for the DEYGLI project was one that allowed for flexibility and collaboration and can be looked at as a “best practice” example when working with community groups. Specifically, this model is seen as effective when working on community issues that bring together police, neighbourhoods and other community service organizations to address issues. Network weaving refers to the development of sustainable communities through the improvement of connections, internal and external, and using these ties and connections to create opportunities for change. Improvement of internal and external connections for the community and community service providers is reported as one accomplishment of the DEYGLI project that provided momentum for solving issues that were not being addressed appropriately through traditional means. Project Recommendations The executive summary provides recommendations in the Community Sector, Business Sector, and for Community Service providers. 1. Community Sector Continue the work that has been started by the DEYGLI project (e.g. landlord project handbook, downtown façade improvement, sex trade initiatives work), Design an organizational structure that enables DEYGLI to continue with community leadership and provides transference of process knowledge to other neighbourhoods experiencing similar issues. 2. Business Sector Capitalize on the strength of Downtown East’s ability to build relationships, and the caring nature, as themes for marketing the commercial sector. 3. Community Service Providers Continue to work with DEYGLI project using a system of managed intervention – continued monitoring to ensure issues do not come back, continue to monitor trends in the downtown, ensure community service supports remain available etc. Project Next Steps The following is being suggested as next steps in the Executive Summary. ì ó í 1. Provide a copy of the summation evaluation report to the DEYGLI advisory group, community members and community service provider representatives for review, 2. Organize a forum for community representatives, community service providers and other partners to discuss the evaluation results and determine what the next steps should be for this project. A complete copy of the project evaluation, including key themes and quotes by community members and community service providers is available in the binder of documents located in the Mayors office, By-law Division or Community Services Department. Also in these binders is: The Strategic Action Plan Summary and Evaluation – which evaluates and comments on all 26 strategic initiatives of the program from 2004 to 2009; The “Who Ya Gonna Call Guide to Community Development” – which is a compilation of experience collected by the project for the last five years that provides extensive information for individuals who are dealing with issues of drug use, prostitution etc. in their neighbourhoods; and “The Tale of Two Brothers” which is a story that demonstrates the impact that drugs and prostitution has on community safety and the escalation of criminal activities. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: Not applicable. See Appendix C for the submitted project financial statement. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Pauline Houston, General Manager, Community Services ì ó ì ì ó ë ì ó ê ì ó é ì ó è ì ó ç ì ó ïð ì ó ïï ì ó ïî ì ó ïí ì ó ïì ì ó ïë ì ó ïê ì ó ïé ì ó ïè ì ó ïç ì ó îð ì ó îï ì ó îî ì ó îí ì ó îì ì ó îë