[act-ma] 5/17: Building an Equitable Community, a JP Summit

[Kyle Robidoux]

  Shaping the Future of an Urban Community: 
  More Than 200 Residents Expected at Community Summit in Jamaica Plain
  Nationally-Recognized Expert Speaks on Equitable Development 
   
              Homeowners and tenants, youth activists and public school parents, small business owners and concerned neighbors will gather on Saturday, May 17 for A Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Summit on Building an Equitable Community. Keynote speaker, Rubén Lizardo, Associate Director of PolicyLink, a research and action institute based in Oakland California, will help JP residents think through and make decisions about the issues facing this community. 
   
              In most communities, urban revitalization follows a familiar pattern: a neighborhood that has suffered from disinvestment and decline begins some revitalization efforts. It becomes funky, diverse, and more desirable. Then the neighborhood emerges as upscale and exclusive. In the process, many people get priced out or can no longer afford to live there. Organizers hope that the JP Neighborhood Summit will raise important questions and develop concrete actions to help ensure that Jamaica Plain can remain inclusive, safe and vibrant. 
   
              “Right now our community is at a critical juncture,” said Richard Thal, Executive Director of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation, the convener of the Summit. “JP has a long history of activism and commitment to social justice. The summit will be a great opportunity for people of many different backgrounds to figure out where we want to go and how we’ll get there.” 
   
              In addition to Mr. Lizardo’s keynote address, panels will address urgent urban issues, including foreclosure, the survival of small businesses, reforming laws that keep ex-prisoners from getting jobs, and improving public education. 
   
              In addition to Mr. Lizardo, other speakers include Gené Moreno of the Chicago Rehab Network; Roxan McKinnon of City Life/Vida Urbana; Holly Sklar, author of Streets of Hope: The Fall and Rise of an Urban Neighborhood, and David Warner, co-owner of City Feed and Supply, a small business in Jamaica Plain. 
   
              Organizers are planning follow-up discussions to build concrete action plans from the ideas discussed at the JP Neighborhood Summit. 
   
         Free child care, Spanish interpretation, and transportation provided.     
   
   
  Who:              All Are Welcome. To register visit www.jpndc.org or call 617.522.2424
  What:             JP Neighborhood Summit: Building an Equitable Community
  When:            Saturday, May 17, 9:00 am to 3:30 pm
  Where:          English High School, 144 McBride Street, Jamaica Plain MA 
   
  For mroe info email Kyle Robidoux @ krobidoux at jpndc.org

       
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