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All-American Cities Award 8/6/90 [OA 8327]
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20
6
7
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARDS \ THE ROSE GARDEN
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990 \ 10:00 A.M.
WELCOME! HENRY CISNEROS, CHAIR OF THE NATIONAL
CIVIC LEAGUE; WAYNE HEDIEN [HEH-DEEN] OF ALLSTATE;
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, STATE REPRESENTATIVES, MAYORS --
AND ABOVE ALL, FRIENDS OF SOME OF THE FINEST CITIES IN
AMERICA. ///
It's AN HONOR AND A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU HERE AT
THE WHITE HOUSE.
- 2 -
THIS EVENT IS SPECIAL. It's SPECIAL BECAUSE TOO
OFTEN IT SEEMS THAT THE FUNCTION OF THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT IS TO MAKE LAWS AND SET LIMITS. BUT THE
CITIES AND CITIZENS WE HONOR TODAY ARE REMINDERS THAT
AMERICA'S POTENTIAL IS TRULY UNLIMITED.
THE ALL-AMERICA CITIES ARE ALL-AMERICAN SUCCESS
STORIES. IN A TIME WHEN SO MANY MOURN WHAT'S WRONG
WITH AMERICAN CITIES, YOU HAVE QUIETLY GONE TO WORK TO
MAKE THEM RIGHT.
- 3 -
You HAVE REFUSED TO SURRENDER TO CRIME, TO DRUG
DEALERS, TO DESPAIR, TO NATURAL DISASTER. YOU'VE
REFUSED TO SEE THE PROBLEMS OF THE HOMELESS AND THE
JOBLESS AS SOMEHOW IMPOSSIBLE TO SOLVE.
INSTEAD, YOU'VE SET OUT TO UNLEASH THE INFINITE
RANGE OF WHAT'S POSSIBLE, WHEN AMERICANS PUT THEIR
MINDS TO IT. AND ALONG THE WAY, YOU'VE REAFFIRMED THE
AMERICAN IDEAL OF EMPOWERMENT.
- 4 -
EMPOWERMENT SOUNDS LIKE A NEW IDEA -- BUT IT'S
SOMETHING PRESIDENT TEDDY ROOSEVELT WELL UNDERSTOOD,
AND WANTED TO PROMOTE, WHEN HE FOUNDED THE NATIONAL
CIVIC LEAGUE IN 1894.
"THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT WAYS," HE ONCE WROTE, "IN
WHICH A MAN OR A WOMAN CAN WORK FOR THE HIGHER LIFE OF
AMERICAN CITIES." WELL, THE MEN AND WOMEN WITH US
TODAY ARE PROVING TEDDY ROOSEVELT RIGHT.
- 5 -
So WE'VE GATHERED TO CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF
EMPOWERMENT, AND THE POTENTIAL OF PARTNERSHIPS --
PERHAPS UNIQUE TO AMERICA -- A SPIRIT THAT IN AN
EARLIER TIME COULD HAVE BUILT A MEETING HOUSE, OR
RAISED A BARN ON A WINDSWEPT FIELD.
TODAY, THE ALL-AMERICA CITIES ARE FORMING
PARTNERSHIPS FOR CHALLENGES OF EVERY KIND -- IN SMALL
INDUSTRIAL TOWNS AND URBAN CANYONS -- AS CITIZENS,
BUSINESSES, GOVERNMENT AND VOLUNTEERS ARE JOINING
FORCES FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR COMMUNITIES.
- 6 -
IN SOME CASES THEY'VE MOBILIZED AFTER AN ACCIDENT,
LIKE FLIGHT 232 IN SIOUX CITY, IOWA -- WHOSE CITIZENS
HAD PLANNED AND ACTED ON AN OUTSTANDING EMERGENCY
RESPONSE SYSTEM.
OR THEY'VE RESPONDED TO A NATURAL DISASTER, THE WAY
THE PEOPLE OF CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG, NORTH CAROLINA
DID, AFTER HURRICANE HUGO.
- 7 -
ALL AMERICANS WERE UPLIFTED BY STORIES OF COURAGE AND
COMPASSION THAT EMERGED DURING THOSE DIFFICULT TIMES.
No HAND WAS IDLE -- AND CERTAINLY NO HEART WAS
UNTOUCHED.
BUT THESE CITIES AND OTHERS HAVE BEEN JUST AS
NOTABLE, I THINK, FOR THEIR COURAGE AND CREATIVITY IN
MEETING LONGER-TERM CHALLENGES.
- 8 -
WHEN THE SCHOOLS OF SOUTH GATE IN Los ANGELES FACED
AN EXPLOSION OF ENROLLMENT -- YOUNG KIDS -- MANY OF
THEM IMMIGRANT AND AT-RISK IN OVERCROWDED CLASSROOMS
-- CIVIC VOLUNTEERS AND LOCAL BUSINESSES VOLUNTEERED
MONEY, TIME AND TALENT TO TURN THE TIDE AGAINST DRUGS
AND GANGS.
THE KIDS -- 15,000 OF THEM -- GOT INVOLVED IN
MARCHES, POSTER AND ESSAY CONTESTS, ASSEMBLIES, AND
ANTI-GANG, ANTI-DRUG PLEDGES. TEST SCORES IMPROVED.
- 9 -
ATTENDANCE WENT FROM AMONG THE LOWEST TO AMONG THE
HIGHEST IN THE L.A. SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND THE DROP-OUT
RATE IS NOW THE LOWEST IN THE L.A. UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICT. AN OUTSTANDING CASE STUDY IN HOW TO SAVE OUR
SCHOOLS,
THE SAME VISION FOR A BETTER FUTURE HAS DRIVEN THE
CITY OF SOUTH ST. PAUL, AS THEY DEAL WITH CHANGE AND
NEW CHALLENGES.
- 10 -
RATHER THAN MOURNING THE LOSS OF A KEY INDUSTRY,
CITIZENS BEGAN TO PLAN A PUBLIC WALKWAY AND TRAIL
SYSTEM ON OLD INDUSTRIAL LAND ALONG THE RIVER.
VOLUNTEERS WORKED TIRELESSLY AT TOWN MEETINGS TO
CONVINCE THEIR NEIGHBORS THAT URBAN RENEWAL MEANS AN
IMPROVED CITY, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND NEW JOBS. STOCK
CERTIFICATES FOR "MISSISSIPPI MILES" WERE SOLD FOR A
DOLLAR EACH, ENLISTING EVEN THE KIDS.
- 11 -
AND NOW, THE CENTER OF SOUTH ST. PAUL IS COMING
BACK TO LIFE. ONE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR EVEN TOLD A LOCAL
HISTORIAN,
"I JUST HAVE TO THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME BACK MY HOME
TOWN. "
FOR FORTY-ONE YEARS, THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE HAS
RECOGNIZED COMMUNITY EXCELLENCE THROUGH THESE AWARDS.
- 12 -
SUCCESS STORIES LIKE THESE -- AS IN BAKERSFIELD,
CALIFORNIA; TAMPA, FLORIDA; COEUR D'ALENE [CURR-DE-
LANE], IDAHO; HAMLET, NORTH CAROLINA; HARRISBURG,
PENNSYLVANIA; AND ABILENE, TEXAS -- ALL ARE A HOPEFUL
REMINDER, THAT THE SUCCESS OF DEMOCRACY DEPENDS ON THE
RESILIENCE AND CAPACITY OF CITIZENS FOR SELF-
GOVERNANCE, EDUCATION, CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY, AND
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
- 13 -
WE SINGLE OUT ALL TEN OF THESE CITIES, NOT BECAUSE
THEY CLAIM TO BE THE "BEST" CITIES IN AMERICA -- I
THINK THEY'RE TOO SMART OR MODEST FOR THAT -- BUT
BECAUSE THEY REPRESENT WHAT'S BEST ABOUT AMERICAN
CITIES.
RATHER THAN LOOKING FOR AN OUTSIDE SOLUTION OR
QUICK FIX, THEY'RE LOOKING WITHIN FOR THE ANSWERS --
AND THEY'RE FINDING THEM.
- 14 -
BY RECOGNIZING AND UNLEASHING THE POWER AND
POTENTIAL OF THE PEOPLE THEMSELVES, THEY'RE PROVING
THAT BIG CITIES CAN MEET ENORMOUS CHALLENGES -- AND
SMALL TOWNS CAN DO BIG THINGS.
So CONGRATULATIONS To YOU ALL. You've EARNED THE
ADMIRATION OF A NATION. BECAUSE WHEN PEOPLE SAY, "IT's
NEVER BEEN DONE" --YOU'RE DOING IT. AND WHEN THEY SAY,
"You CAN'T GET THERE FROM HERE" -- YOU'VE PROVED THAT
YOU CAN. //
- 15 -
[[ AND NOW, IF HENRY AND WAYNE WILL JOIN ME UP HERE,
WE'D LIKE TO PRESENT THIS YEAR'S AWARDS. ]]
# # #
(Lange/Cawley)
August 3, 1990
10:00 A.M.
[CITIES.DOC]
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ALL-AMERICAN CITIES AWARDS
THE ROSE GARDEN
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990
join join@condusion
A.M.
Welcome!
Henry Cisneros, Chair of the National Civic
check w/
Legis.
League; Wayne Hedien [heh-DEEN] of Allstate; Members of Congress
Aff.
State Representatives Mayors --- and above all, friends of some
of the finest cities in America. ///
It's an honor and a
pleasure to have you here at the White House.
[[ Before we get started, I need to ask your forebearance in
order to bring up an issue of particular interest to this group
-- and of great interest to the nation as a whole. You see,
after this ceremony, I'll be heading right over there to the
Briefing Room, to explain to the American public what didn't
happen in the budget summit -- and why it didn't happen.
I took the initiative last spring, and invited the leaders
of Congress to the White House for a bipartisan budget summit.
For two reasons: to preserve economic growth; and to avoid the
meat-ax of indiscriminate cuts across the board -- the kind
a sequestration brings.
When you take the initiative, you've got to take the heat.
And yes, I took my share this summer, for agreeing to put
everything on the table in those negotiations -- including tax
revenue increases -- and we all watched as some took the
opportunity to make political hay, instead of progress.
2
Well, in spite of that summit, the House Budget committee
passed a budget more than 17 billion dollars over the Gramm-
Rudman- Hollings targets.
3
And in spite of our calls for budget reform, the Senate
Budget Committee voted on a bill that weakened the budget
process.
Now Congress has gone on recess. Vacation. And 86 days
after I called on the Democrat leaders in the Congress to work
with me toward a bipartisan budget solution -- after nearly three
months -- the Democrats have yet to offer one single proposal.
I took the initiative -- I took the heat -- and now I'm
taking my case to the American public. So I'm laying my cards on
the table. When the Congress comes back, let them understand
this: I will veto any and every spending bill that busts the
budget.
[pause] /// I feel better already. Now that we've
cleared that up, on to the business at hand. ]]
This event is special. It's special because too often it
seems that the function of the Federal government is to make laws
and set limits. But the cities and citizens we honor today are
reminders that America's potential is truly unlimited.
The All-American Cities are All-American success stories.
In a time when so many mourn what's wrong with American cities,
you have quietly gone to work to make them right.
You have refused to surrender to crime, to drug dealers, to
despair, to natural disaster. You've refused to see the problems
of the homeless and the jobless as somehow impossible to solve.
3
Instead, you've set out to unleash the infinite range of
what's possible, when Americans put their minds to it. And along
the way, you've reaffirmed the American ideal of empowerment.
Empowerment sounds like a new idea -- but it's something
President Teddy Roosevelt well understood, and wanted to promote,
when he founded the National Civic League in 1894.
"There are many different ways," he once wrote, "in which a
man or a woman can work for the higher life of American cities.'
Well, the men and women with us today are proving Teddy Roosevelt
right.
So we've gathered to celebrate the spirit of empowerment,
and the potential of partnerships -- perhaps unique to America
-- a spirit that in an earlier time could have built a meeting
house, or raised a barn on a windswept field.
Today, All-American cities are forming partnerships for
challenges of every kind -- in small industrial towns and urban
canyons -- as citizens, businesses, government and volunteers are
joining forces for the future of their communities.
In some cases they've mobilized after an accident, like
Flight 232 in Sioux City, Iowa -- whose citizens had planned and
acted on an outstanding emergency response system.
Or they've responded to a natural disaster, the way the
people of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina did, after
Hurricane Hugo. All Americans were uplifted by stories of
courage and compassion that emerged during those difficult times.
No hand was idle --- and certainly no heart was untouched.
4
But these cities and others have been just as notable, I
think, for their courage and creativity in meeting longer-term
challenges.
When the schools of South Gate in Los Angeles faced an
explosion of enrollment -- young kids -- many of them immigrant
and at-risk in overcrowded classrooms -- civic volunteers and
local businesses volunteered money, time and talent to turn the
tide against drugs and gangs.
The kids -- 15,000 of them -- got involved in marches,
poster and essay contests, assemblies, and anti-gang, anti-drug
pledges. Test scores improved. Attendance went from among the
lowest to among the highest in the L.A. school district. And the
drop-out rate is now the lowest in the L.A. Unified School
District. An outstanding case study in how to save our schools.
The same vision for a better future has driven the city of
South St. Paul, as they deal with change and new challenges.
Rather than mourning the loss of a key industry, citizens began
to plan a public walkway and trail system on old industrial land
along the river.
Volunteers worked tirelessly at town meetings to convince
their neighbors that urban renewal means an improved city,
economic growth and new jobs. Stock certificates for
"Mississippi Miles" were sold for a dollar each, enlisting even
the kids.
And now, the center of South St. Paul is coming back to
life. One high school senior even told a local historian,
5
"I just have to thank you for giving me back my home town. "
For forty-one years, the National Civic League has
recognized community excellence through these awards. Success
stories like these -- as in Bakersfield, California; Tampa,
Florida; Coeur d'Alene [CURR-de-lane], Idaho; Hamlet, North
Carolina; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; and Abilene, Texas -- all are
a hopeful reminder, that the success of democracy depends on the
resilience and capacity of citizens for self-governance,
education, civic responsibility, and economic development.
We single out all ten of these cities, not because they
claim to be the "best" cities in America -- I think they're too
smart or modest for that -- but because they represent what's
best about American cities.
Rather than looking for an outside solution or quick fix,
they're looking within for the answers -- and they're finding
them.
By recognizing and unleashing the power and potential of the
people themselves, they're proving that big cities can meet
enormous challenges -- and small towns can do big things.
So congratulations to you all. You've earned the admiration
of a nation. Because when people say, "It's never been done" --
you're doing it. And when they say, "You can't get there from
here" -- you've proved that you can. //
[[
And now we'd like to present this year's awards
]]
# # #
copy to POTUS
9pm 8/1
(Lange/Cawley)
August 1, 1990
8:15 P.M.
[CITIES.DOC]
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ALL-AMERICAN CITIES AWARDS
THE ROSE GARDEN
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990
10:00 A.M.
/not on stage].
on
Welcome!
Henry Cisneros, Chair of the National Civic
League; Wayne Hedien [heh-DEEN] of Allstate Members of Congress,
State Representatives, Mayors -- and above all, friends of some
of the finest cities in America. ///
It's an honor and a
pleasure to have you here at the White House.
[[ Before we get started, I want to bring up an issue of
some interest to this group -- and of great interest to the
nation as a whole. Because after this ceremony, I'll be heading
over to the Briefing Room, to explain what didn't happen in the
budget summit -- and why it didn't happen.
I took the initiative last Spring, and invited the leaders
of Congress to the White House for a bipartisan budget summit.
For two reasons: to preserve economic growth; and to avoid the
meat-ax of indiscriminate cuts across the board -- the kind
a sequestration brings.
I took the heat this Summer, for agreeing to put everything
on the table in those negotiations -- including tax revenue
increases -- and we all watched as some took the opportunity to
make political hay, instead of progress.
In spite of that summit, the House Budget committee passed a
budget more than 17 billion dollars over the Gramm-Rudman-
Hollings targets.
2
And in spite of our calls for budget reform, the Senate
Budget Committee voted on a bill that weakened the budget
process.
Now Congress has gone on recess. And 86 days after I called
on the Democrat leaders in the Congress to work with me toward a
bipartisan budget solution -- after nearly three months -- the
Democrats have yet to offer one single proposal.
When the Congress comes back, let them understand this:
I will veto any and every spending bill that exceeds the Gramm-
Rudman-Hollings baseline. /// Now that we've cleared that up,
on to the business at hand. ]]
Too often it seems that the function of the Federal
government is to make laws and set limits. That's one reason
this event is so special. Because the cities and citizens we
honor today are reminders that America's potential is truly
unlimited.
The All-American Cities are great American success stories.
In a time when so many mourn what's wrong with American cities,
you have quietly gone to work to make them right.
You have refused to surrender to crime, to drug dealers, to
despair, to natural disaster. You've refused to see the problems
of the homeless and the jobless as somehow impossible to solve.
Instead, you've set out to unleash the infinite range of
what's possible, when Americans put their minds to it. And along
the way, you've reaffirmed the American ideal of empowerment.
Empowerment sounds like a new idea -- but it's something
3
President Teddy Roosevelt well understood, and wanted to promote,
when he founded the National Civic League in 1894.
"There are many different ways," he once wrote, "in which a
man or a woman can work for the higher life of American cities.' "
Well, the men and women with us today are proving Teddy Roosevelt
right.
So we've gathered to celebrate the spirit of empowerment,
and the potential of partnerships -- perhaps unique to America
-- that in an earlier time could have built a meeting house, or
raised a barn on a windswept field.
Today, these All-American cities are forming partnerships
for challenges of every kind -- in small industrial towns and
urban canyons -- as citizens, businesses, government and
volunteers are joining forces for the future of their
communities.
In some cases they've mobilized after an accident, like
Flight 232 in Sioux city, Iowa -- whose citizens had planned and
acted on an outstanding emergency response system.
or they've responded to a natural disaster, the way the
people of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina did, after
Hurricane Hugo. All Americans were uplifted by stories of
courage and compassion that emerged during those difficult times.
It seemed no hand was idle -- and certainly no heart was
untouched.
But these cities and others have been most notable, I think,
for their courage and creativity in meeting longer-term
4
challenges.
When the community of South Gate in Los Angeles faced an
explosion of young kids -- many of them immigrant and at-risk in
overcrowded classrooms -- civic volunteers and local businesses
volunteered money, time and talent to turn the tide against drugs
and gangs.
The kids -- 15,000 of them -- got involved in marches,
poster and essay contests, assemblies, and anti-gang, anti-drug
pledges. Test scores improved. Attendance went from among the
lowest to among the highest in the L.A. school district. And the
drop-out rate is now the lowest in the L.A. Unified School
District. An outstanding case study in how to save our schools.
The same vision for a better future has driven the city of
South St. Paul, as they deal with change and new challenges.
Rather than mourning the loss of a key industry, citizens began
to plan a public walkway and trail system on old industrial land
along the river.
Volunteers worked tirelessly at town meetings to convince
their neighbors that urban renewal means an improved city,
economic growth and new jobs. Stock certificates for
"Mississippi Miles" were sold for a dollar each, enlisting even
the kids.
And now, the center of South St. Paul is coming back to
life. One high school senior even told a local historian,
"I just have to thank you for giving me back my home town."
For forty-one years, the National Civic League has
5
recognized community excellence through these awards. Success
stories like these -- as in Bakersfield, California; Tampa,
Florida; Coeur d'Alene [CURR-de-lane], Idaho; Hamlet, North
Carolina; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; and Abilene, Texas -- all are
a hopeful reminder, that the success of democracy depends on the
resilience and capacity of citizens for self-governance,
education, civic responsibility, and economic development.
We single out all ten of these cities, not because they
claim to be the "best" cities in America -- I think they're too
smart or modest for that -- but because they represent what's
best about American cities.
Rather than looking for an outside solution or quick fix,
they're looking within for the answers -- and they're finding
them.
By recognizing and unleashing the power and potential of the
people themselves, they're proving that big cities can meet
enormous challenges -- and small towns can do big things.
So congratulations to you all. You've earned the admiration
of a nation. Because when people say, "It's never been done" --
you're doing it. And when they say, "You can't get there from
here" -- you've proved that you can. //
[[ And now we'd like to present this year's awards...]]
Cisreros
# # #
Hedien of Cisneres call them to assist
/ hands awara YO POTUS
/ announces
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARDS \ THE ROSE GARDEN
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990 \ 10:00 A.M.
WELCOME! HENRY CISNEROS, CHAIR OF THE NATIONAL
CIVIC LEAGUE; WAYNE HEDIEN [HEH-DEEN] OF ALLSTATE;
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, STATE REPRESENTATIVES, MAYORS --
AND ABOVE ALL, FRIENDS OF SOME OF THE FINEST CITIES IN
AMERICA. ///
It's AN HONOR AND A PLEASURE TO HAVE YOU HERE AT
THE WHITE HOUSE.
- 2 -
THIS EVENT IS SPECIAL. IT'S SPECIAL BECAUSE TOO
OFTEN IT SEEMS THAT THE FUNCTION OF THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT IS TO MAKE LAWS AND SET LIMITS. BUT THE
CITIES AND CITIZENS WE HONOR TODAY ARE REMINDERS THAT
AMERICA'S POTENTIAL IS TRULY UNLIMITED.
THE ALL-AMERICA CITIES ARE ALL-AMERICAN SUCCESS
STORIES. IN A TIME WHEN so MANY MOURN WHAT'S WRONG
WITH AMERICAN CITIES, YOU HAVE QUIETLY GONE TO WORK To
MAKE THEM RIGHT.
- 3 -
You HAVE REFUSED TO SURRENDER TO CRIME, TO DRUG
DEALERS, TO DESPAIR, TO NATURAL DISASTER. YOU'VE
REFUSED TO SEE THE PROBLEMS OF THE HOMELESS AND THE
JOBLESS AS SOMEHOW IMPOSSIBLE TO SOLVE.
INSTEAD, YOU'VE SET OUT TO UNLEASH THE INFINITE
RANGE OF WHAT'S POSSIBLE, WHEN AMERICANS PUT THEIR
MINDS TO IT. AND ALONG THE WAY, YOU'VE REAFFIRMED THE
AMERICAN IDEAL OF EMPOWERMENT.
- 4 -
EMPOWERMENT SOUNDS LIKE A NEW IDEA -- BUT IT'S
SOMETHING PRESIDENT TEDDY ROOSEVELT WELL UNDERSTOOD,
AND WANTED TO PROMOTE, WHEN HE FOUNDED THE NATIONAL
CIVIC LEAGUE IN 1894.
"THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT WAYS," HE ONCE WROTE, "IN
WHICH A MAN OR A WOMAN CAN WORK FOR THE HIGHER LIFE OF
AMERICAN CITIES." WELL, THE MEN AND WOMEN WITH US
TODAY ARE PROVING TEDDY ROOSEVELT RIGHT.
- 5 -
So WE'VE GATHERED TO CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF
EMPOWERMENT, AND THE POTENTIAL OF PARTNERSHIPS --
PERHAPS UNIQUE TO AMERICA -- A SPIRIT THAT IN AN
EARLIER TIME COULD HAVE BUILT A MEETING HOUSE, OR
RAISED A BARN ON A WINDSWEPT FIELD.
TODAY, THE ALL-AMERICA CITIES ARE FORMING
PARTNERSHIPS FOR CHALLENGES OF EVERY KIND -- IN SMALL
INDUSTRIAL TOWNS AND URBAN CANYONS -- AS CITIZENS,
BUSINESSES, GOVERNMENT AND VOLUNTEERS ARE JOINING
FORCES FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR COMMUNITIES.
- 6 -
IN SOME CASES THEY'VE MOBILIZED AFTER AN ACCIDENT,
LIKE FLIGHT 232 IN SIOUX CITY, IOWA -- WHOSE CITIZENS
HAD PLANNED AND ACTED ON AN OUTSTANDING EMERGENCY
RESPONSE SYSTEM.
OR THEY'VE RESPONDED TO A NATURAL DISASTER, THE WAY
THE PEOPLE OF CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG, NORTH CAROLINA
DID, AFTER HURRICANE HUGO.
- 7 -
ALL AMERICANS WERE UPLIFTED BY STORIES OF COURAGE AND
COMPASSION THAT EMERGED DURING THOSE DIFFICULT TIMES.
No HAND WAS IDLE -- AND CERTAINLY NO HEART WAS
UNTOUCHED.
BUT THESE CITIES AND OTHERS HAVE BEEN JUST AS
NOTABLE, I THINK, FOR THEIR COURAGE AND CREATIVITY IN
MEETING LONGER-TERM CHALLENGES.
- 8 -
WHEN THE SCHOOLS OF SOUTH GATE IN Los ANGELES FACED
AN EXPLOSION OF ENROLLMENT -- YOUNG KIDS -- MANY OF
THEM IMMIGRANT AND AT-RISK IN OVERCROWDED CLASSROOMS
-- CIVIC VOLUNTEERS AND LOCAL BUSINESSES VOLUNTEERED
MONEY, TIME AND TALENT TO TURN THE TIDE AGAINST DRUGS
AND GANGS.
THE KIDS -- 15,000 OF THEM -- GOT INVOLVED IN
MARCHES, POSTER AND ESSAY CONTESTS, ASSEMBLIES, AND
ANTI-GANG, ANTI-DRUG PLEDGES. TEST SCORES IMPROVED.
- 9 -
ATTENDANCE WENT FROM AMONG THE LOWEST TO AMONG THE
HIGHEST IN THE L.A. SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND THE DROP-OUT
RATE IS NOW THE LOWEST IN THE L.A. UNIFIED SCHOOL
DISTRICT. AN OUTSTANDING CASE STUDY IN HOW TO SAVE OUR
SCHOOLS.
THE SAME VISION FOR A BETTER FUTURE HAS DRIVEN THE
CITY OF SOUTH ST. PAUL, AS THEY DEAL WITH CHANGE ÁND
NEW CHALLENGES.
- 10 -
RATHER THAN MOURNING THE LOSS OF A KEY INDUSTRY,
CITIZENS BEGAN TO PLAN A PUBLIC WALKWAY AND TRAIL
SYSTEM ON OLD INDUSTRIAL LAND ALONG THE RIVER.
VOLUNTEERS WORKED TIRELESSLY AT TOWN MEETINGS TO
CONVINCE THEIR NEIGHBORS THAT URBAN RENEWAL MEANS AN
IMPROVED CITY, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND NEW JOBS. STOCK
CERTIFICATES FOR "MISSISSIPPI MILES" WERE SOLD FOR A
DOLLAR EACH, ENLISTING EVEN THE KIDS.
- 11 -
AND NOW, THE CENTER OF SOUTH ST. PAUL IS COMING
BACK TO LIFE. ONE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR EVEN TOLD A LOCAL
HISTORIAN,
"I JUST HAVE TO THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME BACK MY HOME
TOWN."
FOR FORTY-ONE YEARS, THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE HAS
RECOGNIZED COMMUNITY EXCELLENCE THROUGH THESE AWARDS.
- 12 -
SUCCESS STORIES LIKE THESE -- AS IN BAKERSFIELD,
CALIFORNIA; TAMPA, FLORIDA; COEUR D'ALENE [CURR-DE-
LANE], IDAHO; HAMLET, NORTH CAROLINA; HARRISBURG,
PENNSYLVANIA; AND ABILENE, TEXAS -- ALL ARE A HOPEFUL
REMINDER, THAT THE SUCCESS OF DEMOCRACY DEPENDS ON THE
RESILIENCE AND CAPACITY OF CITIZENS FOR SELF-
GOVERNANCE, EDUCATION, CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY, AND
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
- 13 -
WE SINGLE OUT ALL TEN OF THESE CITIES, NOT BECAUSE
THEY CLAIM TO BE THE "BEST" CITIES IN AMERICA -- I
THINK THEY'RE TOO SMART OR MODEST FOR THAT -- BUT
BECAUSE THEY REPRESENT WHAT'S BEST ABOUT AMERICAN
CITIES.
RATHER THAN LOOKING FOR AN OUTSIDE SOLUTION OR
QUICK FIX, THEY'RE LOOKING WITHIN FOR THE ANSWERS --
AND THEY'RE FINDING THEM.
- 14 -
BY RECOGNIZING AND UNLEASHING THE POWER AND
POTENTIAL OF THE PEOPLE THEMSELVES, THEY'RE PROVING
THAT BIG CITIES CAN MEET ENORMOUS CHALLENGES -- AND
SMALL TOWNS CAN DO BIG THINGS.
So CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU ALL. You've EARNED THE
ADMIRATION OF A NATION. BECAUSE WHEN PEOPLE SAY, "IT's
NEVER BEEN DONE" --YOU'RE DOING IT. AND WHEN THEY SAY,
"You CAN'T GET THERE FROM HERE" -- YOU'VE PROVED THAT
YOU CAN. //
- 15 -
[[ AND NOW, IF HENRY AND WAYNE WILL JOIN ME UP HERE,
WE'D LIKE TO PRESENT THIS YEAR'S AWARDS. ]]
# # #
Staffed copy to Factcheck
(Lange/Cawley)
July 30, 1990
5:30 P.M.
[CITIES. DOC]
8/1, 11 am
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ALL-AMERICAN CITIES AWARDS
THE ROSE GARDEN
Betsy @ Civic League
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990
verified that
10:00 A.M.
each city has had a
field investigation
to cheen its claims
Welcome! It's an honor and a pleasure to have you here at
the White House. [[
11.
You know, too often it seems that the function of the
Federal government is to make laws and set limits. That's one
reason this event is so special. Because the cities and citizens
we honor today are reminders that America's potential is truly
unlimited.
The All-American Cities are great American success stories.
In a time when so many mourn what's wrong with American cities,
you have quietly gone to work to make them right.
You have refused to surrender to crime, to drug dealers, to
despair, to natural disaster. You've refused to see the problems
of the homeless and the jobless as somehow impossible to solve.
Instead, you've set out to unleash the infinite range of
what's possible, when Americans put their minds to it. And along
the way, you've reaffirmed the American ideal of empowerment.
Empowerment sounds like a new idea -- but it's something
President Teddy Roosevelt well understood, and wanted to promote,
It'civic
when he founded the National Civic League in 1894.
League
Points
"There are many different ways," he once wrote, "in which a
man or a woman can work for the higher life of American cities."
TR Cyclopedia 1.81
2
Well, the men and women with us today are proving Teddy Roosevelt
right.
So we've gathered to celebrate the spirit of empowerment,
and the potential of partnerships -- perhaps unique to America
-- that in an earlier time could have built a meeting house, or
raised a barn on a windswept field.
Today, these All-American cities are forming partnerships
for challenges of every kind -- in small industrial towns and
urban canyons -- as citizens, businesses, government and
volunteers are joining forces for the future of their
communities.
In some cases they've mobilized after an accident, like
Awarn
Flight 232 in Sioux City, Iowa -- whose citizens had planned and
acted on an outstanding emergency response system.
Or they've responded to a natural disaster, the way the
people of Charlotte, Necklenbing North Carolina did after Hurricane Hugo.
All Americans were uplifted by stories of courage and compassion
that emerged during those difficult times. It seemed no hand was
idle -- and certainly no heart was untouched.
But these cities and others have been most notable, I think,
for their courage and creativity in meeting longer-term
challenges.
When the community of South Gate in Los Angeles faced an
explosion of young kids -- many of them immigrant and at-risk in
intion
overcrowded classrooms -- civic volunteers and local businesses
3
volunteered money, time and talent to turn the tide against drugs
and gangs.
The kids -- 15,000 of them -- got involved in marches,
Dr, sight Pategerry 567- Ir
southGates
poster and essay contests, assemblies, and anti-gang, anti-drug
pledges. Test scores improved. Attendance went from among the
lowest to the highest in the L.A. school district. And the drop-
out rate is now the lowest in the city.
The same vision for a better future has driven the city of
South St. Paul, as they deal with change and new challenges.
50.5t application Paul's
Rather than mourning the loss of a key industry, citizens began
to plan a public walkway and trail system on old industrial land
along the river.
Volunteers worked tirelessly at town meetings to convince
their neighbors that urban renewal means an improved city,
economic growth and new jobs. Stock certificates for
"Mississippi Miles" were sold for a dollar each, enlisting even
the kids.
And now, the center of South St. Paul is coming back to
life. One high school senior even told a local historian,
"I just have to thank you for giving me back my home town."
For forty years, the National Civic League has recognized
community excellence through these awards. Success stories like
these are a hopeful reminder, that the success of democracy
depends on the resilience and capacity of citizens for self-
governance, education, civic responsibility, and economic
development.
4
We single out all ten of these cities, not because they
claim to be the "best" cities in America -- I think they're too
smart or modest for that -- but because they represent what's
best about American cities.
Rather than looking for an outside solution or quick fix,
they're looking within for the answers -- and they're finding
them.
By recognizing and unleashing the power and potential of the
people themselves, they're proving that big cities can meet
enormous challenges -- and small towns can do big things.
So congratulations to you all. You've earned the admiration
of a nation. Because when people say, "It's never been done" --
you're doing it.
When they ask, "Why bother?" -- you're asking "Why not?"
And when they say, "You can't get there from here" -- you've
proved that you can.
[And now I'd like to present .
]
# # #
Inte activities 382-4870
Tim athesson -D
alan Hecht
Co
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Conory
MEMORANDUM
TO:
David Demarest
FROM:
JOSEPH W. HAGIN
SUBJECT:
APPROVED PRESIDENTIAL ACTIVITY
EVENT:
Presentation of the All American Cities Awards
DATE:
August 6, 1990
TIME:
10:00 a.m.
DURATION:
15 Minutes
LOCATION:
Rose Garden
ATTIRE:
Business Suit
REMARKS REQUIRED:
Brief Remarks
MEDIA COVERAGE:
Open
FIRST LADY
PARTICIPATION:
Is Invited
ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION:
CONTACT:
TELEPHONE: OFFICE
HOME
NOTE: PROJECT OFFICER, SEE ATTACHED CHECKLIST
Ed Rogers
Marlin Fitzwater
David Bates
James Cicconi
David Demarest
David Valdez
Fred McClure
Fran Norris
USSS - PPD
Susan Porter Rose
Sig Rogich
Gary Walters
Patty Presock
John Keller
WHCA Audio/Visual
Chriss Winston
Tim McBride
WHCA Operations
Laurie Firestone
J. Bonnie Newman
C. Boyden Gray
William Kristol
Paul Bateman
Jay Allison
Jackie Kennedy
Debra Romash
John Herrick
Deb Anderson
Richard Trefry
KBK 7/5/90
THE TEN 1990 ALL-AMERICAN CITY AWARD WINNERS
AND THEIR MAYORS
BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA
SOUTH GATE, CALIFORNIA
Clarence E. Medders
Herbert W. Cranton
1501 Truxtun Avenue
8650 California Avenue
Zip: 93301
Zip: 90280
Phone: 805-326-3770
Phone: 213-567-1331
R
D
TAMPA, FLORIDA
COEUR d' ALENE, IDAHO
Sandra W. Freedman
Raymond Stone
306 E. Jackson Street
710 Mullan Avenue
Zip: 33602
Zip: 83814-3958
Phone: 813-223-8251
Phone: 208-667-9533
NP (D)
(NP)
SIOUX CITY, IOWA
SOUTH SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA
Robert Scott
Katherine Trummer
6th and Douglas Street
125 3rd Avenue North
Zip: 51101
Zip: 55075
Phone: 712-279-6102
Phone: 612-450-8730
NP
D
HAMLET, NORTH CAROLINA
CHARLOTTE NORTH CAROLINA
Abbie Cocington
Sue Myrick
Post Office Box 1229
600 East Trade Street
Zip: 28345
Zip: 28202-1729
Phone: 918-582-2651
Phone: 704-336-2244
NP
R
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA
ABILENE TEXAS
Stephen Reed
Dale Ferguson
10 N. Market Square
555 Walnut Street
Zip: 17101
Zip: 79601
Phone: 717-255-3040
Phone: 915-676-6205
D
NP
THE white HOUSE
washington
CITIES AWARD CONTACTS
WH: Lynn Lawson X6597
civic League: chris (303)832-5615 Gates
(7/25-7/26: PARK WYATT)
No FED. DOLLARS
Charlotte+ Meck. County
not mayth but,
Bd. of cry." "
NATIONAL
CIVIC
LEAGUE
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD PRESENTATIONS
THE WHITE HOUSE, AUGUST 6, 1990
Draft Points for President Bush
The National Civic League
Founded in 1894 by Theodore Roosevelt and other turn-of-the-
century progressives, the National Civic League promotes the
active involvement of informed and involved citizens in the
governance of their communities.
At the turn of the century, local government in America was
considered among the most corrupt and ineffective in the world.
Fear of executive power had resulted in municipal and county
administrations characterized by impotent mayors, numerous elected
officials, wards dominated by political machines, and appointment
to administrative posts based on the patronage principle alone.
Thus, the League's early approach to the improvement of local
governance was through structural reform: at-large, nonpartisan
elections, the short ballot, and professional administration.
Today it is clear that every community problem cannot be solved in
the charter, through structural reform alone. Good governance
requires responsive elected and appointed officials supported by
the collaborative interaction of citizens and the private and
voluntary sectors.
Henry G. Cisneros, Mayor of San Antonio, Texas from 1981 to 1989,
is the chairman of the board of directors of the National Civic
League. He brings a diversity of experience to the stewardship of
the League, having served as a White House Fellow, Assistant to
the U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, and President
of the National League of Cities. In addition, he served as a
member of President Reagan's National Commission on Central
America.
1
1601 GRANT STREET, SUITE 250, DENVER, CO 80203 303-832-5615
PAGE TWO
The All-America City Award Program
Begun by the League in 1949, the All-America City Award Program is
the oldest and most respected community-recognition award in the
nation. The program is a major part of National Civic League's
effort to recognize and encourage civic excellence.
The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens,
government, business and the voluntary sector joining together to
make their communities better places in which to live and work.
Cities, counties, regions and neighborhoods are eligible to
compete for the award, which serves as a constant reminder that
people in a community however it is defined can work
together to identify, confront and solve their shared problems.
Receipt of the All-America City designation does not mean that a
community is the cleanest, the most affluent, or the most crime-
free. Rather, the award honors communities that have had the
courage and the will to recognize their weaknesses and solve them
creatively and collaboratively, through the involvement of the
broadest possible cross-section of its citizens.
The National Civic League is committed to the principle that the
continued success of our American democracy depends on the
resilience and capacity of citizens to organize effectively for
self-governance, education and responsible economic development in
our cities, towns and neighborhoods. For 41 years, the All-
America City Award has underscored that principle by recognizing
community progress through local civic action.
For more than two years, the National Civic League's All-America
City Award Program has been generously funded by The Allstate
Foundation of North Brook, Illinois. This is a particularly
appropriate partnership. Both the Foundation and its corporate
parent, Allstate Insurance Company, are long-time supporters of
local economic development and community revitalization
initiatives. Allstate's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
Wayne E. Hedien, is a trustee of Neighborhood Housing Services of
America and the American Health Foundation.
2
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
CYCLOPEDIA
EDITED BY
ALBERT BUSHNELL HART
Professor Emeritus, Harvard University
AND
HERBERT RONALD FERLEGER
Roosevelt Memorial Association
FOREWORD BY
WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE
ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION
ROOSEVELT HOUSE
NEW YORK CITY
CITIZENSHIP
CITY AND COUNTRY
CIVIC DUTY
misused power of
CITY AND COUNTRY. It is unhealthy and
the day-laborer in our cities less onerous and
ities of labor, pork-
ft among powerful
undesirable for the cities to grow at the expense
more wholesome-these are subjects which may
of the country. (Third Annual Message, Wash-
well claim the attention of all those who would
ade possible by, and
f, this fundamental
ington, December 7, 1903.) Mem. Ed. XVII,
advance the higher life of American cities.
ry 1916.) Mem. Ed.
220; Nat. Ed. XV, 189.
(Outlook, December 21, 1895.) Mem. Ed. XV,
142-143; Nat. Ed. XIII, 298-299.
255.
In one sense this problem
with which we have to deal is very, very old.
CITY LIFE. See also HOUSING; MUNICIPAL
Two or three years
No nation can develop a real civilization without
ADMINISTRATION.
Germany had passed
ded for her citizens,
cities. Up to a certain point the city movement
the United States or
is thoroughly healthy; yet it is a strange and
CIVIC DUTY. It is a good thing to appeal to
also retaining their
lamentable fact that always hitherto after this
citizens to work for good government because
at these men would
point has been reached the city has tended to
it will better their estate materially, but it is a
P, what the Depart-
develop at the expense of the country by drain-
far better thing to appeal to them to work for
good government because it is right in itself
L dual nationality." I
an insignificant return for this best.
ing the country of what is best in it, and making The
to do so. Doubtless, if we can have clean, honest
SS of our government
was published to in-
problem does not consist merely in the growth
politics, we shall be better off in material mat-
ire would-be citizens
of the city. Such a growth in itself is a good
ters.
It is sometimes difficult to show the
thing and not a bad thing for the country. The
individual citizen that he will be individually
to notify the German
otested against and
problem consists in the growth of the city at
better off in his business and in his home affairs
e its action; that we
the expense of the country. (Outlook, August
for taking part in politics. I do not think it is
27, 1910.) Mem. Ed. XVIII, 191; Nat. Ed.
always worth while to show that this will always
acquiesce in the prin-
XVI, 146.
be the case. The citizen should be appealed to
ship or a dual nation-
primarily on the ground that it is plain duty,
d naturalized citizens
the duties of Ameri-
CITY AND COUNTRY. See also COUNTRY
if he wishes to deserve the name of freeman,
to do his full share in the hard and difficult
e necessarily exclusive
LIFE COMMISSION; FARM LIFE; ROADS.
work of self-government. He must do his share
the profession of citi-
unless he is willing to prove himself unfit for
any other nation, and
CITY LIFE. The most serious disadvantage in
free institutions, fit only to live under a govern-
xtend the same protec-
city life is the tendency of each man to keep
ment where he will be plundered and bullied
is extended to native-
isolated in his own little set, and to look upon
because he deserves to be plundered and bullied
1 was not taken. It is
the vast majority of his fellow citizens indiffer-
on account of his selfish timidity and short-
ation that it was not
ently, so that he soon comes to forget that they
sightedness.
ne 1915.) Mem. Ed.
have the same red blood, the same loves and
A clean and decent government is sure in
II, 373.
hates, the same likes and dislikes, the same de-
the end to benefit our citizens in the material
sire for good, and the same perpetual tendency,
circumstances of their lives; but each citizen
CHARACTER. The
ever needing to be checked and corrected, to
should be appealed to, to take part in bettering
thy and the unworthy
lapse from good into evil. (At Labor Day Pic-
our politics, not for the sake of any possible
conduct and character
nic, Chicago, September 3, 1900.) Mem. Ed.
improvement it may bring to his affairs, but
verty. (Outlook, March
XVI, 510; Nat. Ed. XIII, 482.
on the ground that it is his plain duty to do
XIX, 141; Nat. Ed.
so, and that this is a duty which it is cowardly
CITY LIFE-IMPROVEMENT OF. There
and dishonorable in him to shirk. (Forum, July
are many different ways in which a man or a
1894.) Mem. Ed. XV, 48; Nat. Ed. XIII, 34.
rst essential toward the
woman can work for the higher life of Amer-
tizenship is, of course,
ican cities, and it would be worse than folly to
Each of us has not only his
tind of character which
expect the one who can do most in a certain
duty to himself, his family, and his neighbors,
good husband, a good
line to devote an equal amount of attention to
but his duty to the State and to the nation. We
h will make the woman
another line.
The published studies of Mr.
are in honor bound each to strive according to
she is young, a good
lacob Riis show what almost infinite labor could
his or her strength to bring ever nearer the day
grows older. (At Pacific
be expended with profit by those willing to de-
when justice and wisdom shall obtain in public
pring 1911.) Mem. Ed.
vote a portion of their time to bettering the
life as in private life. We cannot retain the full
630.
material conditions of life for the bulk of the
measure of our self-respect if we cannot retain
populations of our large cities. The improve-
pride in our citizenship. For the sake not only
e also ALIENS; ALLE-
ment of tenement-houses; the establishment of
of ourselves but of our children and our chil-
1; AMERICANIZATION;
many small parks, of free libraries, baths, con-
dren's children we must see that this nation
OLITANS; EDUCATION;
certs, and picture shows; the larger develop-
stands for strength and honesty both at home
NALISM; NATIONALITY;
ment of the noble work now done by the social,
and abroad. (At Colorado Springs, Col., August
ALLEGIANCE; PARTY
college and university settlements; in short, all
2, 1901.) Mem. Ed. XV, 327; Nat. Ed. XIII,
movements in the interest of making the life of
458.
81 ]
CIVIC DUTY
CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION
CIVIL SERVI
There is no truth more im-
governments act. It can, however, do a good
tions are made
portant than the truth that it is the performance
deal. My purpose was to make the National
marked. In th
of duty toward the Commonwealth, and not the
Government itself a model employer of labor,
where there B
enjoyment of unearned privilege from the Com-
the effort being to make the per diem employee
political press
monwealth, that breeds loyalty, devotion, pa-
just as much as the Cabinet officer regard him-
registers are I
triotism. In a family, the father and mother who
self as one of the partners employed in the
appointments
fail to rear their sons and daughters to recognize
service of the public, proud of his work, eager
Grenell, April
and perform their duties neither receive nor de-
to do it in the best possible manner, and con-
Theodore Roc
serve the loyal devotion felt for the heads of
fident of just treatment. (1913.) Mem. Ed.
Neely, N. Y.,
the household where the whole household is
XXII, 526; Nat. Ed. XX, 452.
trained to put duty ahead of pleasure. It is
exactly the same with a nation. (New York
CIVIL SERVICE. See also EIGHT HOUR DAY;
most careful SC
Times, September IO, 1917.) Mem. Ed. XXI,
GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES; OPEN SHOP; Po-
over the acts
54; Nat. Ed. XIX, 46.
LITICAL ASSESSMENTS; VETERANS.
for there is no
depends so mi
If there is an equality of
CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION. The pur-
man himself c
rights, there is an inequality of duties. It is
pose of the Civil Service Commission is to se-
Commissioner
proper to demand more from the man with ex-
cure an absolutely non-partisan public service;
law and do h
ceptional advantages than from the man without
to have men appointed to and retained in office
plish absolutel
them. A heavy moral obligation rests upon the
wholly without reference to their politics. In
the observance
man of means and upon the man of education
other words, we desire to make a man's honesty
do useful worl
to do their full duty by their country. (Atlantic
and capacity to do the work to which he is
It must active
Monthly, August 1894.) Mem. Ed. XV, 50;
assigned the sole tests of his appointment and
done, and mu:
Nat. Ed. XIII, 36.
retention. In the departmental service at Wash-
taken to secure
ington we have succeeded in putting a nearly
doer and to I
CIVIC DUTY AND RIGHTS. I believe it is
complete stop to remoyals for political purposes.
with molestati
even more important for men to pay heed to
Men are retained in the departments almost
Mem. Ed. XV,
their duties and to the rights of others than it
wholly without regard to politics. But it has
is for them to pay heed to their own rights.
been a matter of more difficulty to get them to
CIVIL SEF
But I believe also that they can only do their
come forward and enter the examinations with-
ROOSEVELT
full duty when they enjoy fully their rights.
out regard to politics.
hoe. I have I
(At St. Louis, Mo., March 28, 1912.) Mem.
The task set us is very difficult. We have to
force, and in C
Ed. XIX, 239; Nat. Ed. XVII, 176.
face the intense and interested hostility of the
spoilsmen has
great mass of self-seeking politicians, and of
frightened bot
CIVIC DUTY. See also CITIZEN; CITIZEN-
SHIP; DUTY; FREEDOM; GOVERNMENT; Mu-
the much larger mass of officeseekers, whose
[President Ha
NICIPAL GOVERNMENT; PARTY ALLEGIANCE;
only hope of acquiring office rests in political
have shown sy
PARTY SYSTEM; POLITICAL DUTIES; POLITICS;
influence, and is immediately cut off by the
law should be
application of any, even the most modest, merit
will stand it, 2
RIGHTS; SELF-GOVERNMENT; SUFFRAGE; VOT-
test. We have to overcome popular indifference
But I answere
ING.
or ignorance, and we have to do constant battle
was responsible
CIVIC PLANNING. See PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
with that spirit of mean and vicious cynicism
to the handle
which so many men, respectable enough in
honestly. I an
CIVIC RIGHTEOUSNESS. The State will
their private life, assume as their attitude in
politics; but w]
be saved, if the Lord puts it into the heart of
public affairs. (Atlantic Monthly, July 1892.)
that law is sure
the average man so to shape his life that the
Mem. Ed. XVI, 177-178; Nat. Ed. XIV, II5-
fear or favor.
State shall be worth saving, and only on those
I16.
turned out-o1
terms. We need civic righteousness. The best
mean business.
constitution that the wit of man has ever de-
You say that there is a grow-
1889.) Lodge
vised, the best institutions that the ablest states-
ing contempt for the Civil Service Law. My
men in the world have ever reduced to practice
experience is directly the opposite, and I am
by law or by custom, all these shall be of no
positive that the contempt of which you speak
in this position
avail if they are not vivified by the spirit which
exists only in the minds of the very ignorant,
and a man our
makes a State great by making its citizens hon-
and that these very ignorant are less numerous,
into the world
est, just, and brave. (At Washington, October
so far as this subject is concerned, than they
men. (To Ann
25, 1903.) Mem. Ed. XV, 465; Nat. Ed. XIII,
were only a few years ago, and grow less nu-
Cowles Letters,
55I.
merous year by year.
There is no "shell separating the commission
CIVIL SERVICE. The Federal Government
from the outer world." All that we do is per-
years has been
can rarely act with the directness that the State
fectly open. The registers for the ordinary posi-
for a good law;
[82]
VICE COMMISSION
CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM
however, do a good
tions are made public as soon as the papers are
down on me the bitter animosities of the men
to make the National
del employer of labor,
marked. In the case of special examinations,
who in New York, at least, control politics, it
the per diem employee
where there would be a chance of exercising
was easy to perform creditably, and offered no
net officer regard him-
political pressure or personal favoritism, the
obstacles in the way of being misunderstood or
ners employed in the
registers are not made public until after the
misrepresented by men of standing and intel-
ud of his work, eager
appointments have been made. (To Judson
ligence. (To H. C. Lodge, June 29, 1891.)
ible manner, and con-
Grenell, April 29, 1895.) Clemens, W. M.,
Lodge Letters I, II3.
Theodore Roosevelt, The American. (F. T.
(1913.) Mem. Ed.
Neely, N. Y., 1899), p. 90.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM. Civil service
452.
reform is designed primarily to give the average
The public should exercise a
'so EIGHT HOUR DAY;
American citizen a fair chance in politics, to
most careful scrutiny over the appointment and
ES; OPEN SHOP; Po-
give to this citizen the same weight in politics
over the acts of Civil Service Commissioners,
that the "ward heeler" has. (1913.) Mem. Ed.
ETERANS.
for there is no office the effectiveness of which
XXII, 158; Nat. Ed. XX, I36.
[MISSION. The pur-
depends so much upon the way in which the
man himself chooses to construe his duties. A
Commission is to se-
People often speak of Civil
Commissioner can keep within the letter of the
Service Reform as if it were a matter of mere
artisan public service;
law and do his routine work and yet accom-
administration detail. People speak of it as "a
and retained in office.
plish absolutely nothing in the way of securing
good thing, of course." "We believe in it, of
to their politics. In
the observance of the law. The Commission, to
make a man's honesty
course; not practical, but still, it is a good
do useful work, must be fearless and vigilant.
thing." They say that "doubtless it would be a
work to which he is
It must actively interfere whenever wrong is
little better to have it so." They admit that it
his appointment and
done, and must take all the steps that can be
ental service at Wash-
"might make an improvement in the public
taken to secure the punishment of the wrong-
service." They do not appreciate that it is not
1 in putting a nearly
doer and to protect the employee threatened
merely a question of changing the methods of
for political purposes.
with molestation. (Scribner's, August 1895.)
administration, but that it is a question of sub-
departments almost
Mem. Ed. XV, 178-179; Nat. Ed. XIII, IOI.
stituting a system of equity and justice for a
politics. But it has
system of brutal wrong. It is a question of work-
ficulty to get them to
CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSIONER-
ing a great benefit, not merely to the public
e examinations with-
ROOSEVELT AS. I am having a hard row to
service, but to our public life; it is a question
hoe. I have made this Commission a living
difficult. We have to
of making politics purer; of making a man hold
force, and in consequence the outcry among the
his head higher because he is an American
ested hostility of the
spoilsmen has become furious; it has evidently
citizen. I do not think-I know-that the
; politicians, and of
frightened both the President and Halford
American people, which is true at the bottom,
officeseekers, whose
[President Harrison's Secretary] a little. They
although with many oddities on top, neverthe-
fice rests in political
have shown symptoms of telling me that the
less at the bottom an honest people, believing
itely cut off by the
law should be rigidly enforced where. people
in fair play-do not realize the meaning of "To
e most modest, merit
will stand it, and gingerly handled elsewhere.
the victors belong the spoils," for if they did,
popular indifference
But I answered militantly: that as long as I
they would not tolerate the system for one
to do constant battle
was responsible the law should be enforced up
moment. (At memorial meeting for G. W.
ind vicious cynicism
to the handle every where; fearlessly and
Curtis, New York City, November 14, 1892.)
pectable enough in
honestly. I am a great believer in practical
Mem. Ed. XII, 486-487; Nat. Ed. XI, 230.
as their attitude in
politics; but when my duty is to enforce a law,
onthly, July 1892.)
that law is surely going to be enforced, without
The civil service reform
Nat. Ed. XIV, II5-
fear or favor. I am perfectly willing to be
movement was one from above downward, and
turned out-or legislated out-but while in I
the men who took the lead in it were not men
mean business. (To H. C. Lodge, June 29,
who as a rule possessed a very profound sym-
that there is a grow-
1889.) Lodge Letters I, 8o.
pathy with or understanding of the ways of
il Service Law. My
thought and life of their average fellow citizen.
opposite, and I am
I am very glad to have been
They were not men who themselves desired to
of which you speak
in this position; I think I have done good work,
be letter-carriers or clerks or policemen, or to
f the very ignorant,
and a man ought to show that he can go out
have their friends appointed to these positions.
t are less numerous,
into the world and hold his own with other
Having no temptation themselves in this direc-
oncerned, than they
men. (To Anna Roosevelt, February I, 1891.)
tion, they were eagerly anxious to prevent other
and grow less nu-
Cowles Letters, II3.
people getting such appointments as a reward
for political services. In this they were quite
ting the commission
My task for the past two
right. It would be impossible to run any big
that we do is per-
years has been simple. I have only had to battle
public office to advantage save along the lines
or the ordinary posi-
for a good law; and though this meant drawing
of the strictest application of civil service re-
[83]
PEARY
PEDAGOGY
PHILANTHROPY
atural ideal of
ht.
be successful only if there have been many pre-
PESSIMISM. It is foolish to look at the future
ubmarine next
liminary years of painstaking, patient toil. Great
with blind and careless optimism; quite as fool-
r "peace with-
physical hardihood and endurance, an iron will
ish as to gaze at it only through the dun-colored
1 Belgians and
and unflinching courage, the power of com-
mists that surround the preachers of pessimism.
mand, the thirst for adventure, and a keen and
(The Sewanee Review, August 1894.) Mem.
nasters; when
r the shameful
farsighted intelligence-all these must go to
Ed. XIV, 235; Nat. Ed. XIII, 204.
; for the same
the make-up of the successful arctic explorer;
and these, and more than these, have gone to
rality between
PESSIMIST, THE. There is no place among
the make-up of the chief of successful arctic
us for the mere pessimist; no man who looks at
of the proph-
a mightily op-
explorers, of the man who succeeded where
life with a vision that sees all things black or
hitherto even the best and the bravest had failed.
th his chariots
gray can do aught healthful in moulding the
Commander Peary has made all dwellers in
f Meroz stood
destiny of a mighty and vigorous people. But
the civilized world his debtors; but, above all,
nd the oppres-
there is just as little use for the foolish opti-
we, his fellow Americans, are his debtors. He
mist who refuses to face the many and real evils
has performed one of the great feats of our
that exist, and who fails to see that the only
el of the Lord,
time; he has won high honor for himself and
way to insure the triumph of righteousness in
S thereof; be-
for his country. (Introduction to R. E. Peary's
the future is to war against all that is base,
P of the Lord
The North Pole, March 12, 1910.) Mem. Ed.
weak, and unlovely in the present. (At Pan-
mighty."
XIV, 582; Nat. Ed. XII, 438.
for the nation
American Exposition, Buffalo, N. Y., May 20,
1901.) Mem. Ed. XV, 307; Nat. Ed. XIII,
not dared to
pedagogy. See EDUCATION.
442.
inst the wrong-
it, January 29,
PENDLETON ACT. See CIVIL SERVICE RE-
PESSIMIST. See also OPTIMIST.
Bishop II, 418.
FORM.
PENOLOGY. See CRIME; CRIMINALS.
PETROLEUM. See MINERAL FUELS; OIL.
citizen should
Iun realize that
PEOPLE, THE. See AMERICAN PEOPLE;
PHILANTHROPY. The soup-kitchen style of
e, for a peace
CONSTITUTION; COURTS; DEMOCRACY; Gov-
philanthropy is worse than useless, for in philan-
name on every
ERNMENT; NATIONAL GREATNESS; POPULAR
thropy as everywhere else in life almost as much
lic servant and
RULE; PUBLIC OFFICIALS; REPRESENTATIVES;
harm is done by soft-headedness as by hard-
who endeavors
SELF-GOVERNMENT.
America to see
heartedness. The highest type of philanthropy
PERSEVERANCE. The lesson of unyielding,
is that which springs from the feeling of broth-
secure an over-
iples for which
unflinching, unfaltering perseverance in the
erhood, and which, therefore, rests on the self-
course upon which the nation has entered is one
respecting, healthy basis of mutual obligation
unbeaten, the
d in cowering
very necessary for a generation whose preachers
and common effort. The best way to raise any-
is ruthless and
sometimes dwell overmuch on the policies of
one is to join with him in an effort whereby
ies of the free
the moment. (At Galena, Ill., April 27, 1900.)
both you and he are raised by each helping the
Mem. Ed. XII, 462; Nat. Ed. XIII, 434.
other. (McClure's, March, 1901.) Mem. Ed.
e. (October 23,
XV, 198; Nat. Ed. XIII, 261.
City Star, 31.
Sometimes in life, both at
ARBITRATION;
school and afterwards, fortune will go against
Undoubtedly the best type of
DEFENSE; DIS-
any one, but if he just keeps pegging away and
philanthropic work is that which helps men and
RTEEN POINTS;
doesn't lose his courage things always take a
women who are willing and able to help them-
ALISM; INTER-
turn for the better in the end. (To Kermit
selves; for fundamentally this aid is simply
Roosevelt, December 3, 1904.) Mem. Ed. XXI,
what each of us should be all the time both
FOR PEACE;
= FRINGE; NA-
53I; Nat. Ed. XIX, 477.
giving and receiving. Every man and woman in
the land ought to prize above almost every other
RIGHTS; NEU-
PERSHING, JOHN J. My dear General, you
quality the capacity for self-help; and yet every
PACIFISM; PACI-
are the American most to be envied of all the
man and woman in the land will at some time
USNESS; TREA-
Americans since the close of the Civil War.
or other be sorely in need of the help of others,
WORLD WAR.
You have done the great deed in the great crisis,
and at some time or other will find that he or
and you have made all of us debtors always. Of
she can in turn give help even to the strongest.
ly few outsiders
course, all the wars in which our nation has
The quality of self-help is so splendid a quality
toil and hard-
taken part, even in the Civil War itself, had
that nothing can compensate for its loss; yet,
nent as Peary's;
nothing to show in any way resembling this
like every virtue, it can be twisted into a fault,
many years of
war, or the fighting that you have yourself con-
and it becomes a fault if carried to the point of
1 there must be
ducted. (To General Pershing, September 27,
cold-hearted arrogance, of inability to under-
mpted with any
1918.) Mem. Ed. XXIV, 535-536; Bishop II,
stand that now and then the strongest may be
: the pole" can
457.
in need of aid, and that for this reason alone,
[425]
PHILANTHROPY
PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE
PHILIPPINE INI
if for no other, the strong should always be
sooth, there are attendant difficulties and hard-
government. (Eigh
glad of the chance in turn to aid the weak.
ships. (At Akron, O., September 23, 1899.)
ington, December
(Century, October 1900.) Mem. Ed. XV, 427-
Thomas W. Handford, Theodore Roosevelt,
631-632; Nat. Ed.
428; Nat. Ed. XIII, 374-375.
The Pride of the Rough Riders. (Chicago,
1899), P. 187-188.
Philanthropy has undoubtedly
my belief was tha
been a good deal discredited both by the ex-
There is no question as to
self-government as
ceedingly noxious individuals who go into it
our not having gone far enough and fast enough
leave them free to
with ostentation to make a reputation, and by
in granting self-government to the Filipinos;
not believe in se
the only less noxious persons who are foolish
the only possible danger has been lest we should
which we would {
and indiscriminate givers. Anything that en-
go faster and further than was in the interest
cause I did not b
courages pauperism, anything that relaxes the
of the Filipinos themselves. Each Filipino at the
cast how soon they
manly fiber and lowers self-respect, is an un-
present day is guaranteed his life, his liberty
ment; and once hav
mixed evil. The soup-kitchen style of philan-
and the chance to pursue happiness as he wishes,
have felt that it W
thropy is as thoroughly demoralizing as most
so long as he does not harm his fellows, in a
The people of the
forms of vice or oppression, and it is of course
way which the Islands have never known be-
so rapidly, from ev
particularly revolting when some corporation or
fore during all their recorded history. (At
years of the Ameri
private individual undertakes it, not even in a
Memphis, Tenn., November I9, 1902.) Mem.
come when it wil
spirit of foolish charity, but for purposes of
Ed. XXIII, 267; Bishop I, 232.
judgment as to W
self-advertisement. In a time of sudden and
their association
wide-spread disaster, caused by a flood, a bliz-
In dealing with the Philip-
is, however, one
zard, an earthquake, or an epidemic, there may
pines, I have first the jack fools who seriously
should insist. Eith
be ample reason for the extension of charity on
think that any group of pirates and head-hunters
control of the islar
the largest scale to every one who needs it. But
needs nothing but independence in order that
all responsibility
these conditions are wholly exceptional, and the
it may be turned forthwith into a dark-hued
course would be
methods of relief employed to meet them must
New England town-meeting; and then the en-
We are governing
also be treated as wholly exceptional. (Century,
tirely practical creatures who join with these
islands in the int
October 1900.) Mem. Ed. XV, 433-434; Nat.
extremists because I do not intend that the
selves. If after due
Ed. XIII, 379-380.
Islands shall be exploited for corrupt purposes.
decide that they
(To Rudyard Kipling, November I, 1904.)
erned, then I trust
PHILANTHROPY. See also BROTHERHOOD;
Mem. Ed. XXIII, 383; Bishop I, 332.
we do leave it n
CHARITY; FELLOW-FEELING; SELF-HELP.
that we retain nc
Real progress toward self-
that we take part
PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE. The talk
government is being made in the Philippine
the islands, and g
about the Filipinos having practically achieved
Islands. The gathering of a Philippine legisla-
trality or otherwi
their independence is, of course, the veriest
tive body and Philippine assembly marks a
absolutely quit o
nonsense. Aguinaldo, who has turned against
process absolutely new in Asia, not only as re-
every kind and de
us, owed his return to the islands to us. It was
gards Asiatic colonies of European powers but
XXII, 57I-573;
our troops and not the Filipinos who conquered
as regards Asiatic possessions of other Asiatic
the Spaniards, and as a consequence, it was to
powers; and, indeed, always excepting the strik-
us the islands fell, and we shall show ourselves
ing and wonderful example afforded by the
was elected on the
not merely weaklings unfit to take our place
great empire of Japan, it opens an entirely new
Filipinos indeper
among the great nations of the world, but trai-
departure when compared with anything which
in the Philippines
tors to the cause of the advancement of man-
has happened among Asiatic powers which are
ory that the Fili
kind if we flinch from doing aright the task
their own masters.
The Filipino people,
themselves. What
which destiny has intrusted to our hand.
through their officials, are therefore making real
individual beliefs
We have no more right to leave the Filipinos
steps in the direction of self-government. I hope
as a nation to bi
to butcher one another and sink slowly back into
and believe that these steps mark the beginning
break faith. I ho
savagery than we would have the right, in an
of a course which will continue till the Filipinos
will be given thei
excess of sentimentality, to declare the Sioux or
become fit to decide for themselves whether
and without any
Apaches free to expel all white settlers from
they desire to be an independent nation. But it
in any way ham
the lands they once held. The Filipinos offer
is well for them (and well also for those Ameri-
mit us to staying
excellent material for the future; with our aid
cans who during the past decade have done so
believe we shoul
they may be brought up to the level of self-
much damage to the Filipinos by agitation for
in the Philippine
government, but at present they cannot stand
an immediate independence for which they were
in the Philippines
alone for any length of time. A weak nation can
totally unfit) to remember that self-government
our heel of Act
be pardoned for giving up a work which it does
depends, and must depend, upon the Filipinos
foreign power.
badly, but a strong nation cannot be pardoned
themselves. All we can do is to give them the
ing benefit to us.
for flinching from a great work because, for-
opportunity to develop the capacity for self-
control over then
[426]
300
R6
WHRE
t: Presidential
Addresses and State
Papers of
Theodore Roosevelt
PART THREE
WITH PORTRAIT FRONTISPIECE
Published with the Permission- of the President
Through Special Arrangement
NEW YORK
P. F. COLLIER & SON
PUBLISHERS
KRAUS REPRINT CO.
New York
1970
Idresses
And State Papers
237
by the way in which
working, and at different times I spoke at meetings
present; for only thus
presided over or held in the clubhouses of various
dren's children shall
of the gentlemen here present, sometimes on politi-
gle-hearted devotion
cal subjects, much more often on matters of good
that "righteousness
citizenship affecting us all as good citizens.
ddvess ea Hungarian Club
I grew in those years, gentlemen, to have a very
Dinner, NYC
close feeling of sympathy and affection and regard
AN CLUB DINNER,
for the men and women of the great East Side of
EB. 14, 1905
this city. I needed no urging when I was invited
to come and be a guest at a club of the East Side
ellow-Americans:
this evening. President Braun has described how
e to be with you this
the preliminary invitation took place. It was six
sts of the Hungarian
years ago that this club gave me a dinner after I had
ice to the thought of
been elected Governor, and they then said that they
Sulzer, when I say
"intended to elect me President and that I must
efore election, when
then come and take dinner with them again." I
e, all of us in public
told them that if they would carry out their part of
dent, Congressmen,
the contract I would carry out my part. I am not
merican citizens and
perfectly certain that they anticipated that their
offer would be closed with SO soon, but you see, gen-
it I first took dinner
tlemen, I have closed with it.
hood of where I am
To-night I wish to greet you most warmly and to
remember perfectly,
say that I doubt if we could find a more typically
ere, it was by Mr.
American gathering than this, for Americanism is
olds, and I was told
not a matter of birthplace, of ancestry, of creed, of
inner and hear some
occupation. Americanism is a matter of the spirit
phecies proved true.
that is within, of a man's soul. From the time when
ew to be acquainted
we first became an independent Nation to the pres-
fellow-guests of this
ent moment there has never been a generation in
before. With one
which some of our most distinguished and most use-
Grant, I was then
ful men were not born on the other side of the At-
238
Presidential Addresses
And S
lantic. It is peculiarly appropriate, and to me pe-
common end of social
culiarly pleasant that, in addressing this club of the
ment.
men upon whose efforts so much of the future wel-
I shall not keep you
fare of this city, of this State, of this Nation, de-
have come here not to
pends, I should be addressing men who show by
you will allow me to sa
their actions that they know no difference between
among his old friends.
Jew and Gentile, Catholic and Protestant, native-
your lives. I know th
born and foreign-born, provided only that the man,
the happiness, and the
whatever his creed, whatever his birthplace, strives
when I have been brot
to live so as to do his full duty by his neighbor and
Side in the course of ai
by the community as a whole.
engaged SO to handle
We can not keep too clearly before our minds the
might be a little bett
fact that for the success of our civilization what is
whether I succeeded C
needed is, not so much brilliant ability, not so much
have always been bette
unusual genius, as the possession by the average
In closing I want to
man of the plain homely work-a-day virtues that
in life, upon the succes
make that man a good father, a good husband, a
for. It is a great mi
good friend and neighbor, a decent man with whom
take, to measure succe
to deal in all relations of life. We need good laws.
ters from without, or
We need honest administration of the laws. And
will mislead those al
we can not afford to be contented with less. But
younger people about t
more than all else we need that the average man
There must, of course,
shall have in him the root of righteous living; that
terial basis. I should 1
the average man shall have in him the feeling that
did not wish to leave
will make him ashamed to do wrong or to submit
and not a little worse
to wrong, and that will make him feel his bounden
I should not feel that h
duty to help those that are weaker, to help those
and if he can not do
especially that are in any way dependent upon him,
he is not going to do 1
and while not in any way losing his power of in-
after that certain amo
dividual initiative, to cultivate the further power
been gained then the
of acting in combination with his fellows for the
are the things of the S
Address at Dinnes of the Societyof Friendly Sons of St.
Patrick, Delmonico's, NYC march17, 1905
298
Presidential Addresses
antiquities. It is only of recent years that the ex-
lies for the
traordinary wealth and beauty of the old Celtic
people. In
Sagas have been fully appreciated, and we of
World nati
America, who have so large a Celtic strain in our
and yet ide:
blood, can not afford to be behindhand in the work
Our polic
of adding to modern scholarship by bringing within
them all, a:
its ken the great Celtic literature of the past.
eyes the fac
My fellow-countrymen, I have spoken to-night
with our 0
especially of what has been done for this Nation of
whether for
ours by men of Irish blood. But, after all, in speak-
new nation:
ing to you, or, to any other body of my fellow-
tury will in
citizens, no matter from what Old World country
this from t
they themselves or their forefathers may have come,
the twentiet
the great thing is to remember that we are all of us
in no small
Americans. Let us keep our pride in the stocks from
ship develo
which we have sprung, but let us show that pride,
thought mu
not by holding aloof from one another, least of all
to bear ours
by preserving the Old World jealousies and bitter-
as the syml
nesses, but by joining in a spirit of generous rivalry
ment of all
to see which can do most for our great common
ourselves, f
country.
Americanism is not a matter of creed or birth-
place or descent. That man is the best American
who has in him the American spirit, the American
soul. Such a man fears not the strong and harms
not the weak. He scorns what is base or cruel or
dishonest. He looks beyond the accidents of occu-
pation or social condition and hails each of his fel-
low-citizens as his brother, asking nothing save that
each shall treat the other on his worth as a man, and
that they shall all join together to do what in them
And State Papers
299
lies for the uplifting of this mighty and vigorous
people. In our veins runs the blood of many an Old
World nation. We are kin to each of these nations
and yet identical with none.
Our policy should be one of cordial friendship for
them all, and yet we should keep ever before our
eyes the fact that we are ourselves a separate people
with our own ideals and standards, and destined,
whether for better or for worse, to work out a wholly
new national type. The fate of the twentieth cen-
tury will in no small degree-I ask you to think of
this from the standpoint of the world—the fate of
the twentieth century as it bears on the world will
in no small degree depend upon the type of citizen-
ship developed on this Continent. Surely such a
thought must thrill us with the resolute purpose so
to bear ourselves that the name American shall stand
as the symbol of just, generous, and fearless treat-
ment of all men and all nations. Let us be true to
ourselves, for we can not then be false to any man.
Chris gateric 303/832-545- n03 hangui
THE TEN 1990 ALL-AMERICAN CITY AWARD WINNERS
AND THEIR MAYORS
BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA
SOUTH GATE, CALIFORNIA
Clarence E. Medders
Herbert W. Cranton
1501 Truxtun Avenue
8650 California Avenue
Zip: 93301
Zip: 90280
Phone: 805-326-3770
Phone: 213-567-1331
R
D
TAMPA, FLORIDA
COEUR d' ALENE, IDAHO
Sandra W. Freedman
Raymond Stone
306 E. Jackson Street
710 Mullan Avenue
Zip: 33602
Zip: 83814-3958
Phone: 813-223-8251
Phone: 208-667-9533
NP (D)
(NP)
SIOUX CITY, IOWA
SOUTH SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA
Robert Scott
Katherine Trummer
6th and Douglas Street
125 3rd Avenue North
Zip: 51101
Zip: 55075
Phone: 712-279-6102
Phone: 612-450-8730
NP
D
A city/county
HAMLET, NORTH CAROLINA
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
Abbie Cocington
Sue Myrick
Post Office Box 1229
600 East Trade Street
Zip: 28345
Zip: 28202-1729
Phone: 918-582-2651
Phone: 704-336-2244
NP
R
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA
ABILENE, TEXAS
Stephen Reed
Dale Ferguson
10 N. Market Square
555 Walnut Street
Zip: 17101
Zip: 79601
Phone: 717-255-3040
Phone: 915-676-6205
D
NP
1990 ALL-AMERICAN CITY AWARD WINNERS
BACKGROUND:
On June 9, 1990, ten All-American Cities were selected from among
30 finalist communities by a Jury of individuals experienced in
state and local government and civic affairs. Representing every
region of the United States, the award winners were recognized
for their innovative community efforts to address problems such
as economic decline, hunger, natural disaster, affordable housing
and health care, homelessness, drug abuse, and services for the
aging.
The All-American City Award program is sponsored by a grant from
the Allstate Foundation, North Brook, Illinois. During the two
days prior to the Awards announcements, the 30 All-American City
finalist communities appeared before a 12-member All-American
City Award Jury to present and describe the three projects each
community submitted for the competition. The other 20 All-
American Finalist are:
Birmingham, Alabama
Gadsden, Alabama
Rockville, Maryland
Flint, Michigan
St. Mary's County, Maryland
Tempe, Arizona
Rockville, Maryland
Midland, Michigan
San Franciso, California
Montrose, Colorado
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
Beatrice, Nebraska
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Ouray, Colorado
Oak Park, Illinois
Binghamton, New York
Wichita, Kansas
La Crosse, Wisconsin
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Thibodaux, Louisiana
THE AWARD WINNING CITIES:
BAKERSFIELD, CALIFORNIA: Hard hit by unemployment in 1985,
bakersfield faced such problems as hunger, inadequate funding of
education, and a high teen pregnancy rate. The community, with
the assistance of a volunteer group known as the Golden Empire
Gleaners, currently is collecting some four million pounds of
food each year to help battle hunger among the needy, low-income
elderly, and young children. A community foundation has raised
money to buy computers, slide projectors, cassette players, m and
VCRs to improve the educational facilities of the local library.
Finally, a teen pregnancy center, "Aunt Cherie's Home, founded
by a concerned citizen to provide unwed mothers with shelter and
educational assistance, was expanded through volunteer work and
privately donated resources. Contact person: Ethel Landers,
Community Relations manager, pacific Bell, 200 New Stine Road,
Room 260, Bakersfield, CA 93309 Phone: 805-398-4205
THE AWARD WINNING CITIES CONTINUED:
SOUTH GATE, CALIFORNIA: In the early 1980s, South Gate was
plagued by economic disaster, apathy among citizens,
discrimination bred by a heavy wave of mostly Hispanic
immigrants, and a lack of civic participation among youth. By
1986, South Gate has turned its economy around, adapting to the
loss of big industry by nurturing small businesses and
manufacturing operations. To date, redevelopment activities have
resulted in the creation of 4,000 new jobs. The community made
itself more attractive to business by encouraging dialogue
between its established citizens and immigrant newcomers, and by
reducing crime and graffiti through city funded graffiti removal
and a graffiti hotline. Other programs launched for the
community's recently arrived immigrants include English-as-a-
second-language classes and low-income housing assistance. In
addition, the South Gate Commission on Youth has developed
activities and educational programs for both children and
parents. Contact person: Maureen O'Conner, Public Information
Manager, City of South Gate, 8650 California Avenue, South Gate,
CA 90280. Phone: 213-563-9532.
TAMPA, FLORIDA: As in many cities, drug abuse and inadequate
housing are problems in Tampa. To help reduce the drug problem,
the city has developed the Quick Uniformed Attack on Drugs, or
QUAD. A special squad of 41 officers were assigned solely to
stop street-level drug sales. The officers were assigned to one
of four quadrants. Police carry beepers so citizens can call if
they suspect any drug activity in their neighborhoods. As a
result of the program, response time has been reduced, and
relations between the citizens and the police have improved. The
Peer to Peer program was created to help stop Tampa's growing
problem of urban blight. Under this program, citizens are
encouraged to report and act upon housing and environmental code
violations. The "Paint Your Heart Out, Tampa" program uses
community volunteers to paint low-income homes and the homes of
the elderly. Contact person: John Dunn, Director of
Communications, City of Tampa, One City Hall Plaza, 8N, Tampa, FL
33602 Phone: 813-223-8712.
COEUR d'ALENE, IDAHO: Along with a faltering economy, the
citizens of Coeur d'Alene were faced with a threatening
situation: the presence of a neo-Nazi group. In order to combat
the destructive messages of this group, the citizens formed a
Human Relations Task Force to 1) support the victims of
discrimination and harassment, and 2) educate citizens and pass
human rights legislation. The Task Force has sponsored
billboards and Martin Luther King Day celebrations and provided
legal assistance in harassment cases. To strengthen its economic
base and create new jobs, the city formed Jobs Plus, a nonprofit
organization established to recruit new business and development.
So far, 1,500 new jobs have been created. As the city's
population has grown, so has its health care services
infrastructure. However, one important need was not being
provided: cancer treatment. The Kootenai Medical Center
Foundation was formed to provide a solution to this problem.
After much discussion, money was raised for a free-standing
cancer treatment center and "the Waldon House, A Caring Place, "
which offers out-of-town patients and families housing while at
the center. Contact person: Brad Dugdale, Investment Executive,
D.A. Davidson, 505 Front Avenue, Suite 203, Coeur d' Alene, Idaho
83814 Phone: 208-667-1212
SIOUX CITY, IOWA: The 1980s brought the worst blow to Sioux
City's agricultural economy since the Great Depression.
Comprehensive economic repositioning was needed. The Siouxland
Initiative was created to raise funds for area development. The
community responded with $2.7 million in development funds
resulting in 1,048 new jobs. In addition, the Tri-State
Collaborative was organized to realize the common interests and
goals of the Sioux City region. A major study of political,
educational, human, and economic initiatives that will benefit
the area is underway. The Woodbury County Multi-Hazard
Contingency Plan brings together emergency services that once
operated as isolated units. The Plan coordinates the efforts of
emergency services units when a broad, diverse response is
check
needed. The effectiveness of the Plan was tested when Flight 232
crashlanded at the Sioux City Airport in July 1989. Contact
this
person: Dennis W. Lauver, Director, Government and Community
Relations, Sioux City Chamber of Commerce, 101 Pierce Street,
Sioux City, Iowa 51101 Phone 712-255-7903
SOUTH ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA: Celebrating local heritage and growth
is a long tradition in South St. Paul. The Celebration of the
Centennial in 1987 focused on the pride, ethnic heritage and
traditions of the city. The Mississippi River has always played
an important role in the city, not only economically but
socially, and a group of citizens wanted both residents and
visitors to experience the beauty and the power of the river.
They obtained funding and approval to build a public walkway and
trail system along the length of the river. Between 1969 and
1979, the city's two largest meatpacking plants closed. In 1987,
the Mayor's Action Team announced the purchase of 47 acres of
land along the riverfront, formerly occupied by a meatpacking
plant. For the first time since 1919, the land is open for
development. For more information, contact: Lois Glewwe,
Secretary, Celebrate 1990 Commission, 105 Tenth Avenue North,
South St. Paul, MN 55075; (612) 457-3403.
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA: One of the biggest problems facing
any growing city is affordable housing. The Charlotte-
Mecklenburg Housing Program was developed not only to provide
housing for low-income families, but to help residents become
self-sufficient. The arts and sciences have S special place in
Charlotte, thanks to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Cultural Action
Plan, which has spearheaded renovations, expansions and new
exhibits. Last fall, in a matter of a few brief hours, Hurricane
Hugo ripped through Charlotte, destroyed years of development and
beautification efforts. Minutes after the storm ended, the
community joined in to help establish a City-County Emergency
check
Operations Center, a "Hugo Hot Line" and a Hugo Task Force. For
more information, contact: Thomas M. Flynn, Assistant to the City
Manager, City of Charlotte, 600 East Fourth Street, Charlotte, NC
28202; (704) 336-2241.
HAMLET, NORTH CAROLINA: With a population of just over 6,000,
Hamlet faces many of the same problems as other small towns
across the nation. A decline in the number of patients served
combined with Medicare cuts were slowly killing Hamlet Hospital.
In order to save the hospital, citizens and the Hamlet
Ministerial Association rallied the hospital's directors, medical
staff and other employees to keep the facility's doors open.
Because of the tremendous show of support, a large medical
corporation agreed to lease the hospital. Additionally, a 65-
bed skilled nursing home decided t locate in Hamlet after
learning of the community's support for health care. In order to
modernize and expand the Hamlet Library, funds had to be raised
from citizens. A volunteer group, Friends of the Library, did
just that. With fundraising events ranging from bake sale to
"Buy a Brick" sales, $167,000 was raised for library
improvements. The Seaboard Festival, an arts and crafts fair,
was a modest effort until 1985 when the festival's board of
directors decided to expand. Since then, the number of the
exhibitors has grown from 80 to 110, and the Old Hamlet theater
has reopened for business. For more information, contact: Ron
Niland, City Manager, City of Hamlet, P.O. Box 1229, Hamlet, NC
28345; (919)582-2651.
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: The loss of 800 business in 20 years
put the City of Harrisburg into an economic tailspin. In 1986, a
nonprofit development corporation and the city government took a
leadership role in attracting new business, building office
space, renovating shopping areas, and restoring historic
buildings in the downtown area. As the downtown was renovated,
so were the parks. With the help of the Parks Partnership, seven
parks were reconstructed and funds four more were made available.
In 1972, a flood ruined City Island and the city decided not to
rebuild it. However, the mayor saw the deterioration of City
Island as a symbol of past problems and decided it had to be
renovated. A local design firm developed a plan and local
contractors donated material and equipment needed to build a
stadium and a ball park. Refreshment stands, a marina, a water
taxi system, and other amenities have also been added. For more
information, contact: John J. Kane, CDBG Compliance Officer,
City of Harrisburg, 10 North Second Street, Suite 206,
Harrisburg, PA 17101; (717) 255-6402.
ABILENE, TEXAS: Due to soaring medical costs, many working poor
and poor citizens of Abilene could not afford health care. The
closing of a clinic forced city officials into action. With an
influx of donations and volunteers the Presbyterian Medical
Center Mission's services were expanded to ensure that the health
care needs of all citizens were met. In addition, the citizens
of Abilene formed ACT NOW! to set community goals, identify
issues and needs, and survey attitudes. Finally, to help boost
its sagging economy, the city submitted a bid for one of three
new 2, 250-bed prisons the state planned to build. A 100-member
task force joined together to develop the proposal and lobby for
the prison. In spite of overwhelming odds, Abilene was selected
as the site for one of the new state prisons. As a result, 800
jobs and more than one -million dollars will be added to the
economy. For more information, contact: Charlie Dromgoole,
President, Abilene Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 2281, Abilene,
TX 79604 i (915) 677-7241
OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
SOUTH GATE,
LOS ANGELES,
CALIFORNIA
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of acommunity: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Council/AdministratorPOPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
below 18 years 36.98%
(1988 or most recent) 79208 3 84781 2
18-25
7.37
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-), 2
26-35
17.06
(1970-1988) 39+
36-50
21.28
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65
6.65
3
(1988 or most recent) 10,561 per sq.mi.
Over 65
10.66
PERCENTAGE MINORITY 2
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY 1
Black
1.32
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic
72.70
Manufacturing
50
Asian
N/A
Trade (retail/wholesale) 39
Other
1.72
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME $20,436 2
Agriculture
Less than 1
Services
11
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL 16.25%2
1
(percentage pre-WWII) 18.91
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
6.10%4
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS
1- 1980 Census: 2- 1989 Pop. facts by Nat'l decision sys.: 3- 1989 Pop. & Hsg. est. by
CA. Dept. of Finance; 4- HUB Citys Census Data
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Stephen C. Park
TITLE
President
ORGANIZATION
Park/Abrams Development Company
ADDRESS
15751 Rockfield Blvd., Suite 200
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Irvine, CA 92718 '
TELEPHONE
(714) 859-1999
SIGNED
Cap
DATE 4.11.90
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME Maureen O'Connor
TITLE
Public Information Manager
ORGANIZATION City of South Gate
ADDRESS
8650 California Avenue
CITY/STATE/ZIP South Gate, California 90280
TELEPHONE
(213) 563-9532
SIGNED Maurcen Cocase
DATE april 16, 1990
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz., to present the finalists' cases.
1.
Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
The biggest problems within the community of South Gate during the 1980's included: 1. A loss of participation in organized
activities by the tremendous number of young people within the community leading to increased vandalism and crime; 2. A lack
of communication between the changing cultures of the city resulting in conflict between the old establishment and the new im-
migrants; and 3. The economic disaster which hit South Gate at the same time when entry level, blue collar jobs which were so
important to the changing community were lost with the disappearance of the smokestack industries. After World War II South
Gate became a mecca for a generation of white middle-class families due to the established and prosperous war production in-
dustry. The community had all the appearances of a stereotypical average American town. The population was predominant-
ly Caucasian Angio (eighty percent) with a small group of Latino and Black families.
However, during the seventies, the ethnic mix began to make a major swing towards a larger Latino population. This change
had a marked effect on the older community and the expected conflicts soon occurred. Because the lifestyle of the newcomers
was so different from that of the majority of the last generation of immigrants, the "oldtimers" were challenged to adapt. Signs
of community unrest and deterioration soon became evident. As many of the original Caucasian families began to exit the mid-
dle class owner-occupied sections of town, these areas became increasingly renter- occupied. Graffiti appeared as gang ac-
tivity increased. A period of general malaise swept through major sections of the city. Apathy had taken its toll and blight
seemed to have landed in these areas to stay. By the early 1980's South Gate was acknowledged as one of the ten "ports of entry"
for undocumented aliens in the United States. This groundswell of people taxed the infrastructure and resulted in a reduction
of necessary services to the resident base. In addition to this developing situation, South Gate lost over 7,000 jobs with the
closure of some major and minor employers including General Motors (3,800 jobs lost), Firestone Tire and Rubber (990) and
others. The unemployment rate went from 2.4% to a high of 14% when the national unemployment rate was under 7%. The
city was facing it's first financial cultural crisis.
Many of the people were migrating here from rural areas or from very small villages in Central and South America. The
lack of urban social awareness and English communication skills, made the meeting of two cultures difficult at best. Permanent
residents complained that "they" were ruining "our" neighborhood. Indeed, the different cultural backgrounds of these new resi-
dents did not assist them in being what could be termed "good neighbors." With the "new" immigrant situation, and the con-
tinued transition from the former community make-up, there came many new challenges. There was also an explosion of young
people. Our Jr. High population expanded to over 4,000 (the largest in the nation), the High School to 3,800, and our typical
elementary school has a student population of over 1,800 at each of our nine public campuses. This caused busing of a number
of students to schools outside the City and distant from their neighborhoods, year-round schools and overcrowded classrooms.
As we began this period, school testing scores showed a major decline, the drop-out rate increased, drug related arrests
were increasing and latch-key kids became the norm. Our P.T.A.'s were dying and street gang violence and graffiti began to
become commonplace. In order to provide housing for the family members that seemed to continually arrive, these new resi-
dents crowded entire families into single rooms, garages and other outbuildings. Those without contacts in the community lived
in cars or abandoned buildings. South Gate is listed as the 14th most densely populated city in LA County with nearly 10,500
persons per square mile. By this time though, everyone knew that the situation wasn't going to change soon. These trends had
to be halted. Community leaders were now aware that they would have to utilize new skills in dealing with this challenge. The
community united to confront these challenges with new programs designed to resolve these unwanted developments.
Last year, civic leaders in cooperation with local officials, formed the "Commission for South Gate Youth" which is a cross
section of the community itself. It includes volunteers from the local government, schools, ministry, parents, business and in-
dustry. The purpose was to create a clearing house for all major youth activities. The first projects created anti-gang instruc-
tion in every school in the community at the 4th and 5th grade levels. Last year this program was instituted with a "Proud To Be
Me, Gang and Drug Free" rally with 5,000 students marching in protest against gangs and drugs. In April there was a follow-
up rally that continued this massive protest with over five thousand students and community members demonstrating. The
D.A.R.E. program over the last four years has seen 4,000 students graduate with only two drug related arrests at the Jr. High.
The P.T.A.'s breathed anew with an outreach committee from the Commission for South Gate Youth, and meetings between
parents and teachers (largely in Spanish) began to take place. An innovative program dealing with latch-key kids has been
piloted to allow children to remain on campus in extended care. At the same time, homework labs, recreation activities, library
usage and much more is now available through a partnership between the Parks Dept. and the schools. The establishment of
many youth programs and volunteerism has resulted in our children's test scores improving and attendance increasing to among
the highest in the School District. Gang and drug activities have decreased and a sense of pride is emerging like never before.
As the migration continued, evidence of the new emerging community became evident in other positive ways like new eateries
catering to the changing taste, additional celebrations such as Cinco de Mayo and Mexican Independence and other culturally
significant events. It had become evident that other stereotype concepts were ill founded. Many enterprising individuals estab-
lished new retail and service businesses, creating added employment and new cash flow within the community.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
The formation of the South Gate Commission On Youth and the implementation of the programs formed by the volunteers
from various sectors of the city. The Commission supports and develops an ever increasing number of youth programs in-
cluding yearly marches and assemblies, paid for by the business community, that include over 5,000 children in each effort.
The marches and assemblies are accompanied by a poster contest, essay contests and formal signing of anti-gang and anti-
drug pledges. Last year over 15,000 children were involved in this effort. Classes are sponsored for children who have
problems, rather than using disciplinary action against them. Alanon and Alateen programs are sponsored by the drug IM-
PACT program. The City sponsored DARE classes and JADE'S "Proud To Be Me" programs are in each school. The schools
sponsor a graffiti brigade which works with the City's program. The results are dramatic. The DARE and JADE themes of
pride in self are carried proudly by our kids. The Y.M.C.A. sponsors several programs, one of which takes young people to
Sacramento, CA to sit in with state legislators to learn about our country and another one takes youth camping in the moun-
tains. Several hundred area youth participate in these programs. The schools and churches sponsor parent outreach programs
and parent education programs. PTA membership has grown from five parents to over 100 at the Jr. High. Similar success is
reported at the elementary schools. Parenting class enrollment has increased from five per class to over 50 in the recent clas-
ses. Citizen participation is very evident - civic organizations, the Chamber of Commerce members, and local businesses
headed by Pete Ellis, owner of a large car dealership in town, not only volunteer their money but also their time and leader-
ship. The many youth programs in the city have resulted in South Gate children performing better than other children in test
scores; attendance at our schools has gone from being low when compared to other schools in the L.A. Unified School Dis-
trict to being among the highest attending schools in the District; the drop-out rate for South Gate's young teenagers is the
lowest among all secondary schools in the LAUSD. Teacher turn over in South Gate is also among the lowest in LAUSD
a tribute to the successful transition our schools and children have made.
FROM SMOKESTACKS TO SHORTSTACKS (Economic Development). South Gate has managed to make a transition
from a primarily smokestack industry city to a diversified one of small businesses and light manufacturing. South Gate lost
over 7,000 jobs in the 1980's with the closure of some major and minor employers including General Motors (3,800), Fires-
tone Tire and Rubber (990) and others. The unemployment rate went from 2.4% to 14%. To address these problems the
City's Redevelopment Agency began an aggressive attack on blighted commercial areas and vacant industrial sites using bar-
gaining skills and an aggressive recruitment of much needed new commercial businesses. Developers who had never heard
of South Gate soon were clamoring to bring their projects to this city. The Agency developed innovative commercial and
residential rehab programs to address deferred maintenance and beautify the city. In 1986 the City received approval as a
State Employment and Economic Incentive Area (enterprise zone) to provide state tax incentives to businesses who hire
people from the community of high unemployment. In 1988, the city joined with five surrounding cities to form t he Hub Cities
Consortium to address unemployment, job training and job placement for youth, adults and senior citizens using funds from
the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA). Of the 1,200 youth (14 to 21) trained during the summer, 100 have been employed
and of the 400 adults trained, 350 have obtained and kept jobs, all through these programs. In response toarapidly spread-
ing graffiti problem, which in addition to creating ugly blight, also undermines property values, the City responded with a
comprehensive abatement program. Starting in 1986-87, this program through ordinance, provides forfree removal by City
Staff. It now includes three full-time positions and responds to over 3,000 calls for service yearly.A 24 hour hotline service
for residents was established and 7,000 separate projects were completed last year, resulting in the removal of over one mil-
lion square feet of graffiti. The annual $200,000 plus cost of this program is paid from Federal Block Grant Funds, and rewards
of $500 are paid for information leading to a conviction. More than 10,000 flyers describing the program in English and Spanish
were distributed through the schools and the business community and over 25 rewards have been paid this year. Vandals
convicted of property destruction are required to pay restitution by the courts. One recent case required the restitution of
over $10,000 in damages to property owners. To address the needs of the small businesses which were coming into the city,
a partnership with the Chamber of Commerce and the City brought a series of on-going workshops to assist with these spe-
cial problems and set goals. Overall there were nearly 4,000 jobs created in the City just through redevelopment activities.
Many of the new developers which formed public-private partnerships with the city have also become active promoting bet-
ter youth and senior lifestyles.
BRIDGING THE CULTURES Today the flood of immigrants has begun to subside and the community has begun to stabi-
lize at around 60,000 new Hispanic residents with a total population of over 80,000. Programs have been created to assist this
changed community by providing housing assistance to over 800 families, education including ponular and successful
amnesty guidance (7,500 adults) and English- as-a-second-language classes (5,200 adults) whi
thousands on the waiting lists. The Secular Community of South Gate suffered drastically wit
church membership by the loss of over 7,000 employees when our twolargest plants closed. The (
spiritual refuge to these new residents with their open doors. Many Pastors, Assistant Pastors
Hispanic, and church congregations, through active intervention programs have swelled with fo
constantly winning others away from gangs. Over half of the churches have additional services
of their facilities are used for amnesty programs.A group called Church Women United, com
all the different churches in South Gate, have provided shelter to battered and abused childre
ses. The local Salvation Army provides food and over 200 beds each evening for those in need.
tion, coordinating with other community groups has instilled unity between cultures by having
for special services. In all, the community of South Gate has managed to not only survive the
"bridge between the cultures."
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
The organization of the South Gate Commission on Youth was a natural step for community members with the realiza-
tion that South Gate has over 20,000 children in the schools and approximately 8,500 under school age. The Police Chief
set up meetings with the school officials, the Parks Department, concerned parents and citizens where ideas were pooled
and a program schedule incorporating these new ideas was drawn up. It was decided by these community members that
a problems. single entity would be most effective in coordinating the ideas the people closest to the problems had for solving the
This group approached the City Council and requested that a Commission be formed and formally recognized by the City.
Funds were raised from the community and private business. No funding is provided by the City. In fact, all the members
of the Commission Board and all the sub-committee members are volunteers. Many City employees volunteer their time
on Commission activities.
The devastating plant closures in the early 80's are what prompted the Economic turn around of the City. Workshops with
community members, both business people and residents, met and came up with some goals. This is when the Redevelop-
ment Agency became active and started the innovative employment programs and actual marketing of South Gate to at-
tract new businesses and developers.
A drastic shift of ethnic population in the late 70's, created by the sudden loss of thousands of white-collar jobs, caused
an enormous exit migration. The vacant homes left by the displaced work force, soon were filled with a new emigration of
less skilled people from Central and South America.
A street Fair, part of an economic/social plan developed to counter the defracton of the city, was held on the main shop-
ping district. It was organized through the cooperation of the City, the business people and the Chamber of Commerce.
The Fair provided a place for young people and families of all ethnic sectors to gather and socialize, while at the same time
enhancing the economic structure of the city through the stimulation of additional business.
As a result of the changing ethniticity over 90% of the Park Dept. program participants are Hispanic. In response to these
changes, the Department has organized a new youth soccer league in which over 200 children now participate (with many
parents assisting) plus other programs like the very successful Folkloric dance program.
Many of our most sucessful programs such as the Crime Prevention program, PTA curriculum and anti-gang/drug-free
programs are held in Spanish, and the literature used in these are printed in both Spanish and English.
The community at first had difficulty grasping the magnitude of the change. Once this had been ascertained however, the
citizens of South Gate jumped to the challenge. Spearheaded by local educational leadership, the secular, civic, business,
government and other sectors of the community began diverse activities to involve these new residents into the now bur-
geoning local society. It was soon recognized that this dis-coordinated approach was producing minimal success.
With this knowledge, the community leadership began networking with each other. The result of this has been the found-
ing of several blue ribbon committees that have implemented many very workable programs to ameliorate this condition.
We now have bi-lingual educational programs, religious services, news and other literature. There is now one of the most
positive anti-gang and drug-free programs in effect in any city in the United States.
South Gate.
From the youth to the senior citizens and both the well to do and the needy find that there is a helping hand available in
We still don't have all the answers, but we are continually struggling to improve the lot of "all" the citizens of this City.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Commission for S.G. Youth
50 Centralized activities through Community Volunteers
Youth Marches and Rallies
40 Volunteers/9,000 Students
Police Reserves/Explorers
60 Volunteers
Optimist/Kiwanis/Rotary/Soroptimist
160 Fund Raising/Volunteers
Liberty Cable System
20 Public Information
L.A. Unified School District
20,000 + D.A.R.E./anti drug and gang instruction/public info.
within the City of South Gate
S. G. Chamber of Commerce
400 Planning/Volunteers
S.G. Blockwatchers Leadership
40 Volunteers/Plannning/Fund raising
S. G. Ministerial Association
25 Volunteers
Police Volunteer Corporation
50 Volunteers
S.G. Coordinating Council
75 Coordinating and instructing community groups
S.G. Adult Education
10,000 Education/Public Information
Tweedy Mile/Hollydale
100 Represents local business districts
Business Associations
HUB Cities Consortium
25 Jobs/Training for Youth/Seniors
American Youth Soccer
200 Youth 45 Volunteers
S.G. Beautification Comm.
50 Awards Residents/Businesses for pride of ownership
S. G Athletic Assoc.
1,200 Youth 600 Volunteers
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
The Commission for South Gate Youth began from a community summit meeting which was called as a result of the rising
gang and other youth problems. At the conclusion of this summit it was clearly determined that gangs/drugs and other youth
problems were a primary community issue and must be addressed. From that start, local civic and government volunteers
working with the City and its Police Department formed the Commission made up of 50 community volunteers. It wasn't
long before priorities were set up and a budget was set along with many sub-committees. With an attitude of personal con-
cern for our children we have been able to substantially reduce juvenile crime, post a record low drop out rate throughout
the City and develop an active anti drug and gang program. Additionally there is a new wave of self esteem in the youth
population. They are indeed "proud to be me".
With a redirected concept of economic leadership and direction, many key groups were energized such as the Chamber of
Commerce, business associations and others to tackle unemployment, redevelopment, housing and like issues. The purpose
was to present an attractive package to entice businesses, industry and developers to our community. Through these actions
we have been able to successfully turn our City from the brink of bankruptcy to that of a thriving community. With a 35%
increase in average incomes, several new shopping areas and two major center sites, continual quality school expansions and
a moderate unemployment and comparatively little actual homelessness, South Gate has really changed for the better.
Dealing with the challenges of changing cultures, many organizations and schools soon recognized that a strong and con-
tinuous effort must take place in order to adjust and accept our new "Latino" population into an historically "Anglo" city.
South Gate adults are averaging a continual enrollment of over 5,200 students in the English as a Second Language programs,
with thousands on the waiting list. The amnesty program has assisted over 7,500 individuals. Churches have Spanish Lan-
guage services and ministers and schools have PTA meetings in Spanish. There is also a Spanish translator available in each
City Government Office and many publications are bi-lingual to insure appropriate communication. The community has
been able to more than cope with the change.
We have successfully met head on a myriad of problems, and have implemented several alternative options to provide solu-
tions to them. People working with people, individual efforts in coordination with each other for a better community in which
to live and work, has in the end, been our greatest asset.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
Durrell Maughan
8620 California Ave., S.G. (213) 567-2503
Chairman, Commission for S. G. Youth
Rev. George Jamison
9300 Pinehurst Ave., S.G. (213) 564-4008
Pastor, Parkview Church, S. G. Youth Comm.
Chief Ronald George
8620 California Ave., S.G. (213) 563-5453
Chief of Police, S. G. Youth Comm. Advisor
Andrew G. Pasmant
8650 California Ave., S. G. (231) 563-9529
Director of Community Development
Jerry Turner
3350 Tweedy Blvd., S. G. (213) 567-1203
President of Chamber of Commerce
Steve Parks
15771 Rockfield Blvd. Suite 200, Irvine (714) 859-1999 President, Parks/Abrham Development
Darlene Echeverria
4100 Firestone Blvd., S. G. (213) 567-1431
Parent Outreach Cooridinator, S. G. Youth Comm.
Dr. Peter Ferry
4100 Firestone Blvd., S. G. (213) 567-1431
Principal S. G. Junior. High, S. G. Youth Comm.
Marcos Vega
8650 California Ave., S. G. (213) 567-1365
Director of Project J.A.D.E.
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
The principal hurdle in the formation and activation of the Youth Commission was that of who should assume the respon-
sibility for gangs, drugs and other youth problems. The community's first reaction was to point fingers at "parents, teachers
or the local government, etc., as the major causes.
Economically, in the mid eighties, the City was experiencing a major downturn. Many important companies had closed
which then created both significant unemployment and resultant instability. The exodus of the chiefly Anglo sector of the
population and the influx of immigrants from Central and South America created significant changes in the social economic
base if the City.
Because the dramatic change in the ethnic switch didn't occur overnight, there were many residents who had serious dif-
ficulty with the ethnic, national origin, race and language(s) of the newcomers.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
Through community meetings and forums, the concept of total community responsibility had its beginning. People for the
first time began to see that if we are to be successful and have any real impact, we must first admit that youth problems are
community problems, and must be addressed as such. Hundreds of volunteers began to come forward with their time and
money to form the Commission, and begin with its fund raising efforts to support its youth programs.
Changes in business began with the establishment of an economic development workshop that involved local citizens and
businesses in the decision making process. As a result, goals and objectives were established and the City pursued an ag-
gressive redevelopment program over the next few years changing the underlying fiber of the community. By pursuing in-
dustrial, commercial and residential development opportunities, the city is now experiencing significant growth in building
activities. A new flux of expansion in the private sector, encouraged by this activity, is now returning to South Gate it former
position as a place to invest.
Through programs initiated by civic, educational and local government agencies, the community has been able to bring an
accelerating cultural exchange to fore. On a never ending basis, programs that teach English as a second language have
provided the vital communications link for our people. As a result, many of the Anglos have now begun to learn Spanish
as a second language also. In fact by this interaction we have built a bridge for the cultures that is a two way route.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Index #4:
Police Volunteers - 50 staff the Dept. record bureau, subpoena serving, clerical, and jail custody. 12,000 hours
yearly are contributed. Home Safety - homes have been secured with over 30,000 crime prevention devises. Only 3 have been
burglarized. Volunteers have contributed in excess of 16,000 hours (average age 72). The Police Assoc.- helps the infirm
elderly with chores in their spare time. Youth Commission - 50 member committee is completely volunteer and dedicated
to the enhancement and enrichment of our youth. It is less than a year old and many successful programs are already in place:
"Proud To Be Me" Youth Rallies; Drug/Gang education in all the Elementary and Jr. Hi. Rec. Nature Trips; Poster, essay
contests; After school programs (tutoring and recreation for latch key kids); Teen Town (a healthy environment for weekend
recreation); Tutor Program (teens helping teens and elementary school kids). Fraternal and Service groups have counter-
part clubs at the H.S. level introducing youth to volunteerism. Care Affair deals with the activities of learning impaired youth.
Developers and Businesses have contributed $1,000's annually for non-profit groups and activities. Graffiti Program The
City has a model graffiti program in effect for 5 years. Now churches have programs which have youth erasing graffiti on
weekends. For 6 years the City Government has provided free graffiti removal services. During FY 88-89 over 1,100,000
sq/ft was removed. During 1990 volunteers involving youth from area churches was initiated. Clean Up Days - Conducted
through the Chamber, Volunteers have removed 1,000's of tons of debris.
Index # 10:
Recognizing our limited resources and common problems shared by area communities, cooperation when
at all possible is becoming a standard. Police Dept. -SEANET a cooperative sharing resources between our Dept. and others
result in better coverage of criminal activities ie: "Sylmar Bust" the worlds largest cocaine seizure (21.5 tons, street value over
$20 billion). Hub Cities Consortium - Composed of 6 cities are attacking unemployment and poverty through job train-
ing/placement of low income youth, seniors and laid-off adults. JADE -Supported by funding from local groups and area
cities, the Juvenile Assistance Diversion Effort is unique, helping combat youth problems like gangs, drug/alcohol, family
and peer problems, etc.
Church Women United and the Ministerial Assoc.-Inter-denominational in nature, are uniting communities and provides
emergency shelter/food on a volunteer budget. Emergency Services - the City has mutual aid agreements for mutual help
in the event of a major emergency situation. Others include: Enterprise Zone: Small Business Administration: Chamber
Workshops: Alameda Transportation Corridor -Joint Powers Administration: Southeast Legislative Committee (a coali-
tion of parents and school officials).
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
To view South Gate and the remarkable cooperation and progress that has occurred in the last two or three years, it seems
strange that our weakest component would be Civic Index #5. Bridging the cultures has been a most difficult challenge that
has been approached from several angles. However, we have only begun to see progress in the essential objectives.
We are now actively attempting to accomplish the goals of turning the City around. Included are redirecting the ambitions
of our youth from destruction to a constructive future, meaningful employment, and increasing the quantity and quality of
housing for low and moderate income families. In fact, we have been able to develop meaningful avenues of communication
and support for over 30,000 of our citizens. However, we have yet to involve another 50,000 or more of our residents. (These
figures don't reflect the acknowledged, but unknown number of the undocumented in our underground. This group may be
as large as 15,000, but in any case this segment of our community are the very ones that have the greatest need.)
Through the massive and continual efforts of the schools, civic organizations, the churches and the local government we
have made substantial movement. Having built a nucleus of nearly one third of the community, we can now build on these
accomplishments to provide assistance to those still in need.
It has become readily evident that the programs have had a profound effect on the problems of this rapidly changing partner-
ship of people helping people.
We still have a most difficult job ahead, but we now feel we are succeeding in making South Gate truly an All American
City.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
THE PEOPLE FOR TOMORROW. DEDICATION TO THE NEEDS OF OUR YOUTH.
The major focus of this community towards our youth is to instill the need for each child to be Proud To Be Me" With the
formation of the Youth Commission in cooperation with the L.A. Unified School District, a concerted effort has been es-
tablished to provide a continuance of education and community involvement for our young people.
No longer do we allow outside controls to go unchecked. Re- enforcement of basic community values are integrated into the
daily curriculum of each school. Special attention is given to the individual social needs through our Impact Program for
drug abuse interdiction, D.A.R.E., and SAY NO programs.
Constant efforts by the community leaders have resulted in programs designed to fill the spare and unsupervised time avail-
able to our young people. After school programs, recreation trips, tutor programs and Teen Town provide alternate venues
to the need for adolescents to belong to a particular group or gang.
Positive community participation by our youth in Proud To Be Me rallies and marches, with nearly 5,000 students actually
placing their names on a poster stating their position against drugs and gangs, have sent a powerful message to those who
would attempt to corrupt this generation.
By helping each other, through the programs mentioned above and others such as Teens Helping Teens, the children of this
town have created a bonding of importance in the strength of many, against the constant assaults on their lives by undesirables.
This community's dedication to the future of our children has proven to be one of the basic blocks for the rebuilding of a
better South Gate.
PEOPLE HELPING PEOPLE, A PARTNERSHIP IN OUR FUTURE.
Volunteerism; given or done of ones free will. A gift to others that by its nature returns in fold. No community or group can
long survive without the gifts of time, experience and labor of its citizens.
Today we expect our government to provide us with basic needs of housing, food and other social cares. This expectation
has however, resulted in more and more reliance on Big Brother to help.
The meter of a community is however measured by the gifts of its people for the good of all. In South Gate tens of thousands
of hours are given annually to provide for the services that are not otherwise provided.
Through programs like our Police and Parks volunteers, Locks for Seniors, Meals on Wheels, Oldtimers Foundation,
SECIL, Youth Commission, Adopt a School and other similar civic and religious activities, we have been able to span much
of the gap in social obligations that many other cities have not yet begun to address. we have become Partners In Our Fu-
ture.
WE THE PEOPLE IN ORDER TO RE-ESTABLISH THE BASIC VALUES OF OUR COMMUNITY.
Care, pride, achievement, grass roots, bootstrap attitudes all describe the desire of this partnership of People helping People
in our community to better their lot.
Since the tragic economic and social disasters of the late seventies and early eighties, the People of South Gate cast aside
their individual complacency and have joined together, thousands strong, to solve the problems that affected us and have
developed a resolve to work together as a community in a positive and constructive manner.
Through volunteerism, philanthropy and the basic American attitude of pride, this public partnership of strong willed people
have turned short term adversity into a solid base for the future.
WE ARE THE PEOPLE WE DON'T ASK OTHERS TO DO OUR JOB.
Simply put, we have found that if you wait for others to provide you with what you need, you will truly wait. It is in the best
interest of any community to solve its problems as they occur, not to tarry.
Yes, we still have many problems to confront, but we will address each like we have those of the past few years and we, the
People of South Gate will persevere.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
SIOUX CITY
WOODBURY
IOWA
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of acommunity: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENTCounci1/Mayor, Manager City
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
below 18 years 28.38
(1988 or most recent) 79,240 '88 estimate
18-25
13.38
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or -),
26-35
15.6%
(1970-1988) -7.8%
36-50
14.1%
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65
15.2%
(1988 or most recent) 1,528 per mile !86
Over 65
13.5%
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY
Black 2.8%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic 5.0%
Manufacturing 21.8%
Asian 3.8%
Trade (retail/wholesale) 24.38
Other .08%
Agriculture
6.5%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME 30,812 Family of 4 in '89
Services
47.4%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL 9%
(percentage pre-WWII)
67;
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 3.9% '89 Average
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS 135
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Art Silva - Task Force Committee Chairman
TITLE
Co-Owner
ORGANIZATION
Team Ford
ADDRESS
2001 East 6th Street
CITY/STATE/ZIP Sioux City, IA 51101
TELEPHONE
712-277-8420
SIGNED
DATE
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME
Dennis W. Lauver
TITLE
Director of Governmental and Community Relations
ORGANIZATION
Sioux City Chamber of Commerce
ADDRESS
101 Pierce Street
CITY/STATE/ZIP Sioux City, IA 51101
TELEPHONE
712-255-7903
SIGNED
DATE
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz, to present the finalists' cases.
1. Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
Sioux City in the mid-Eighties desperately needed to hear Benjamin Franklin's famous
words at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: "Let us hang together, or most assuredly
we shall hang separately." Fortunately, we decided to hang together but only after provocation.
Reagan-era prosperity had bypassed Sioux City, which was suffering from the effects of the worst
agricultural economy since the Great Depression. Businesses and individuals had reduced incomes
and the region had a serious outmigration of population, businesses, and leadership. For all of its
history, in fact, Sioux City had been dependent on the rural economy, with meatpacking and
agribusiness at its economic center. Compounding those problems was the decline in funding
from federal and state sources, at the worst possible time: when slowed business activity and
depressed property values had already shrunk our revenue base and elevated property taxes to the
highest in the state of Iowa.
Sioux City's first priority, then, was active economic repositioning. We had to decide to
take the lead in our development, rather than being at the mercy of short-term, outside economic
and governmental forces. Since then, we have had an economic turn-around, led by a highly
successful community-mounted program of $2.7 million support for new and expanding
businesses, and an aggressive reform of tax structure. Some results are over 1000 new jobs and
$56.1 million in capital investment since September 1988. We know also that these changes will
have positive long-term results, rather than being reactive "quick fixes."
Another priority was to redefine our relationship to the surrounding area and its economy,
and to assume our role as a center for development of Siouxland- - the Iowa/Nebraska/South
Dakota tri-state region. Six million vehicles a year pass Sioux City on Interstate 29, and yet our
efforts to attract and hold interest in Sioux City were sporadic and seasonal. Recent events in our
Tri-State Collaborative a major effort including new political, educational, human and economic
development programs - -- demonstrate that we are seeing our opportunities clearly and making the
most of them.
A closely related priority was our need to broaden and coordinate our leadership and meet
the challenges of a changing population. We had to find means by which more new and potential
leaders could be involved in public and business development. Since 1986 several programs have
actively sought and nurtured young leaders, who have taken powerful roles in community
activities. Further, we needed to respond more actively to welcome the immigrant "New
Americans" and minorities attracted to Siouxland because of our improving employment
prospects. Active community- and area-wide dialogue are leading to an integrated, "networking"
response to the needs of our new citizens, especially the homeless, unemployed, and newly
employed.
In a fourth priority, Sioux City and the tri-state area needed to coordinate and improve the
delivery of human services. Sioux City has had a good history in human services, with many fine
agencies and institutions; what was lacking was the communication and cooperation to mount
area-wide responses. Since then, our program of disaster preparedness planning is a model of
improvement and citizen involvement attracting national attention and Presidential recognition, as
witness our response to the United Airlines Flight 232 tragedy.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
The Siouxland Initiative is the "flagship" effort of economic turn-around for the area. In
1988 a group of 216 area civic and business leaders joined efforts and promises of support in the
Siouxland Initiative to raise private and public funds for area development. With a publicly
announced target of 2000 new jobs by 1992, the initial fund-raising goal was $1.5 million, but
the metropolitan community responded with $2.7 million, which has fueled the creation of 1048
new jobs and $56.1 million in capital investment (Sept. 1988-Feb. 1990). Showing strong
government performance, The City of Sioux City successfully implemented in 1988 the state's first
local-option sales tax, which raises over $5 million annually, with $500 thousand dedicated to
economic development. Surrounding cities and leaders in three states have been involved from the
start in the Siouxland Initiative, with perhaps as broad a cooperation and consensus in a single
development project as northwest Iowa has ever seen. Area media efforts have been strongly
supportive and effective in sharing our message regionally and nationally.
The Tri-State Collaborative is our umbrella name for the active recognition of interests and
goals held in common in the area comprising northwest Iowa, southeast South Dakota, and
northeast Nebraska. Effective involvement of government is shown through the establishment of
the annual Tri-State Governor's Conference, the implementation of Customs User Service, and
the pending certification of Sioux City as a Foreign Trade Zone. Begun entirely through volunteer
effort, the Tri-StateWomen's Business Conference and Leadership Sioux City acknowledge the
value of cultivating a skilled, diverse body of leaders for every segment -- governmental, private,
and non-profit agencies. Launching the new Tri-State Graduate Center has involved educators
from four regional colleges and three state universities, as well as governmental and business
leaders. The Sioux City Chamber of Commerce and the Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan
Planning Council have successfully encouraged private and cooperative initiatives to benefit people
across community and state boundaries. Government, industrial and charitable and educational
concerns from communities in all three states have also begun to cooperate powerfully in
responding to the inflow of "New Americans" attracted by good job prospects in the area, as we
actively seek to involve them in sharing our vision of a good future for all citizens in the area.
Networking and civic education initiatives have begun in many segments of the community,
including social service agencies and schools, and resulting in regional and state media awareness.
As part of the Collaborative, Siouxland United Way is at this writing acting as a clearing house for
volunteers in all segments of the community, and the Siouxland Foundation -- a group of over 100
area business leaders -- is seeking to make targeted endowments in community betterment.
The Woodbury County Multi-Hazard Contingency Plan is a model of area-wide
coordination and communication. Its core agency is Woodbury County Disaster Committee,
comprising a standing committee of 40 city, county, military, medical and private agencies, and up
to 60 volunteers. In 1986, before the Plan was created, the agencies were acting as individual
responders, but then they agreed to coordinate services -- especially in anticipating accidents that
would need broad, diversified responses. From that agreement came the frequent scheduling of
area-wide disaster preparedness drills, and the Contingency Plan also made it possible to call on
other community people and resources. The tragedy of Flight 232 -- the crash of a DC10
involving 296 passengers -- showed just how effective that planning had been, and how truly
compassionate the Siouxland community can be. City officials handled logistics and media
relations; local Air National Guard personnel coordinated expertly with civilian police and fire
forces; the two hospitals cooperated in comprehensive triage; businesses donated supplies and the
labor of employees; social service agencies and the three Sioux City colleges gave countless
hours, personnel, and resources to meet the human services needs of crisis workers, survivors and
their families. The total community involvement was estimated at between 30 thousand and 45
thousand people -- probably a quarter of the area's population.
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
Siouxland Initiative : In the early Eighties, what we needed most was to "cultivate
our own garden," to recognize and act on our own potential. The Siouxland community
seemed unaware of our own strengths, and we were experiencing the exodus of some
long-standing local agribusiness and manufacturing concerns. Much of the Siouxland
economy was operating passively, in a crisis mentality, and we were smokestack chasing --
hoping to be saved by the arrival of a new plant for some major corporation. Sue Bee
Honey, an important Siouxland employer and the world's largest honey marketing
association, became a bellwether, however, when it approached the City with its interest in
expanding although it was "landlocked" by its present site and zoning laws. A group of 14
interested leaders from Sioux City, South Sioux City and North Sioux City gathered
through the efforts of the Sioux City Chamber of Commerce, and they persuaded the Sioux
City government to work on behalf of keeping Sue Bee Honey in the community. The City
then approached Sue Bee, offered help with zoning and utilities, and passed a local-option
tax to support development needs such as theirs. With this aid, Sue Bee stayed and
prospered. Seeing these good results, the leaders formed the Siouxland Regional
Marketing Council to support similar efforts with other businesses. With a year's work,
they persuaded the Chamber of Commerce to design and sponsor the Siouxland Initiative.
In supporting the good people and industries that are already here, local pride and self-
reliance have soared.
Tri-State Collaborative : Two forces prompted us to rethink our regional
relationships. First, we saw that the traditional boundaries were arbitrary -- that if the old
state and federal divisions and structures weren't helping us, we would have to redefine the
area to help ourselves. Second, we saw that our old lowa-Nebraska-South Dakota
parochialism caused wasted energy and unrealized potential. We decided to build a
regional synergy where teamwork would pay off. Governmental units from each state
cooperated to bring the Tri-State Governor's Conference; business and government have
worked to support regional business development regardless of which city it happens in;
United Way (and others) now organize regionally rather than by city; the Tri-State
Graduate Center fosters cooperation between educational institutions in all three states; the
Tri-State Women's Business Conference seeks participants throughout the region; the
Sioux Gateway Airport and Airport Authority have identified us as a major regional facility;
and retail capacity has doubled. Whatever we want to do now, we try the team approach
first, and it's working.
Multi-Hazard Plan : Several changes had pushed regional emergency services
beyond their ability to respond as isolated units. Shrinking tax dollars meant that services
had to become more efficient, with less duplication. Further, roles had to be redefined to
avoid duplications and insure that all needs were met. Turf battles kept individual agencies
from acting cooperatively and effectively. Increased hazards such as increased air traffic
needed a larger scale of potential responses. In 1987 a Disaster Committee representing 12
agencies and several new administrators met, to improve the assessment and coordination
of disaster planning. Since then the Committee has grown to include 40 agencies from the
tri-state area. With this collaboration and clearer roles, the Disaster Committee has an
increased response area, active partnerships, and effective communication lines to all
supporting agencies and services. Getting to know each other has paid off.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Siouxland Regional Mkt. Council
14 members from three states
"skunk works," creativity
Siouxland Initiative
307 public, private, nonprofit donors
outreach and fundraising
Sioux City Chamber of Commerce 975 members
volunteer effort
Sioux City gov't
5-member council, incl. mayor
tax initiatives, cooperation
also city manager
with other govt units
Siouxland Labor-Mgt. Comm
35 businesses and labor organizations
Sxland Initaitve, tri-state
Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan
58 gov't agencies in tri-state area
planning, articulation
Planning Council
Sioux Gateway Airport Authority
20 public, private organizations
tri-state development
Woodbury County gov't
5-member board incl chairman,
cooperation with other
also administrator
govt units
United Way
community-wide donors,
$2 million raised in 1990
25 agencies are receivers
Midwest Energy
utility serving 503 thousand
"model corporate citizen,"
in 4 states
active in all three projects
Briar Cliff College
800+ students, 150+ staff/faculty
tri-state graduate center
Morningside College
800+ students, 150+ staff/faculty
tri-state graduate center
Leadership Sioux City
106 alumni from all sectors
tri-state, Sxland. Initiative
Tri-State Women's Bus. Conf.
av. 200 women per year
tri-state development
Wdby. Cty. Disaster Committee
60 members from 48 entities
disaster planning
185th Tactical Fighter Group
320 f.t., 600 p.t. employees
articulation with airport,
disaster committee
Marian Health Center
serving the region w/ 484 beds
disaster planning, regional
identification
St. Luke's Regional
serving the region w/ 353 beds
disaster planning, regional
Medical Center
identification
Western Iowa Tech
1200 students, 250 staff/faculty
active in all three projects
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
Siouxland Initiative : Inspired by the cooperative success in helping Sue Bee Honey, the
Siouxland Regional Marketing Council prompted the Chamber of Commerce to found the Siouxland
Initiative, to raise funds for development of jobs and capital improvement. Involving 307 members and
aiming to raise $1.5 million, the Initiative raised $2.7 million of community pledges from all sectors,
resulting in $56.1 million worth of capital development and 1048 new jobs to date.
Tri-State Collaborative : The Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan Planning Council (SIMPCO)
responded to the changing tax picture and regional identification by sponsoring the Tri-state Governors'
Conference and inviting a wide cross-section of regional leaders to be involved. Likewise, SIMPCO, area
businesses and institutions inaugurated an area graduate center to meet regional needs. Midwest Energy
stood behind every development of the region and announced a major development project promising new
employment, housing and recreation. Leadership development was sponsored in two programs by the
Sioux City Chamber. The Tri-state Collaborative has fostered a regional business climate and created new
relationships and potentials that were simply inconceivable before.
Multi-Hazard Plan : After organizing itself and its supporting agencies, the Woodbury County
Disaster Committee planned a comprehensive articulation of 140 regional facilities and rehearsals for
events requiring large-scale responses. Lines of communications were emplaced which reached into every
segment of the metropolitan community in addition to emergency-service responders. The two regional
medical centers cooperated perfectly in planning triage and staffing. The success of this planning is shown
by our response to the Flight 232 disaster -- with a plane twice the size usually landing in Sioux City. Our
response involved 35 to 40% of the entire metropolitan population.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
Siouxland Initiative:
Roland Junck
Prince Manufacturing (712) 277-4061
CEO
Bob Scott
Sioux City City Hall (712) 279-6102
City Council member, 1986 - present
Les Horrell
S.C. Chamber of Commerce (712) 255-7903
President
Tri-State Collaborative
Russ Christiansen
Midwest Energy Co.
(712) 277-7400
Chairman, President
Don "Skip" Meisner
Siouxland Interstate Metro. Planning Council
Executive Director
(712) 279-6286
Sister Margaret Wick
Briar Cliff College (712) 279-5321
President
Multi-Hazard Contingency Plan :
Gary Brown
Woodbury Cty Disaster Services (712) 279-6550
Director
Chuck Sundberg
Siouxland Health Services, Inc. (712) 258-7766
Executive Director
Lynn Posey, B.S.N.
Western Iowa Tech. (712) 274-2600
Instructor, medical response preparedness
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
Siouxland Initiative : Attitude was the major obstacle - "it can't be done here." Business leaders were
isolated from each other, creative ideas were unspoken and unsupported, and resources were untapped.
Tri-State Collaborative Traditional boundaries, in both government units and community thinking, kept
Siouxland from seeing its common interests and regional identification. Foot-dragging state governments
divided the efforts and potential of the area. Leaders tended to be divisive rather than cooperative.
Multi-Hazard Plan : "Turf battles" between various service agencies prevented cooperation. Agencies
felt threatened by each other, and thus in both feeling and action they were isolated, unprepared and unable
to respond to large-scale emergencies.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
Siouxland Initiative : The leaders led, the community believed. Strong leaders, both private and
governmental, reoriented themselves toward cooperation, community planning, and positive risk-taking.
Hundreds of volunteers spread the word and helped gather pledges of work and capital.
Tri-State Collaborative : We "hung together." The Siouxland Interstate Metro. Planning Council
prompted the tri-state identification and enlisted the governors to address our regional character directly.
Private, public and nonprofit agencies - businesses, public officials, colleges, and civic volunteers,
identity. among others -- have defined the need of regional identity and the opportunities that exist only through that
Multi-Hazard Plan : "New brooms sweep clean." New administrators saw how the community was
unprepared. Through cooperative planning, they installed the team approach, ending the battles and
convincing everyone involved that public safety is more important than turf.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Intercommunity cooperation. Siouxland isn't just a group of municipalities and
governments. We are composed of many other communities as well business, human services,
education, information, culture - and we are building consensus across all sorts of community
lines. Our government and business leaders have stopped thinking of partisan interests, in
responding to community-wide needs for leadership development, graduate education, human
services delivery, and capital improvements at sites in all three states. We are seeking and
involving more citizen participation from more groups than ever before. By sharing the challenge
of our own potential, we stopped being reactive about economic development, and volunteered
support of the Siouxland Initiative at almost twice our original goal. In another example, labor
and management have begun to see both problems and achievements in common, and one great
result is broader involvement and increased contributions from every sector for United Way.
Finally, we know we've only just begun; at the time of this writing, the City of Sioux City is
sponsoring Vision 2020, a comprehensive planning process to achieve an articulated community
vision, a statement of community goals, a future land-use plan, and an intra-community
transportation plan. Obviously, community development leaders are more intent than ever on
gathering and sharing information. In the end, everyone is affected by community development,
and we think everyone should be involved.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Community vision and pride. We have a real opportunity for civic education, to tell the story
of Siouxland's turnaround in the past five years. Some long-time Siouxlanders have greater vision
and pride now than we've ever had before but the good news hasn't reached everyone. The
surprising story is that the good news has already involved almost everyone. Our greatest
successes have come from the good that is already here: the people, the groups, the community
resources. Siouxlanders are generous, hard-working, cooperative people, but we're unpretentious
about our own achievements. Now is the time to support those achievements with the pride they
deserve, and to make new visions from the ones we have already realized.
In that spirit, several events are helping spread the word. The Sioux City Journal printed a
major edition Sunday, March 25, to highlight the contributions of the Siouxland Initiative. The
United Way is actively seeking volunteers from every organization in the area, and its levels of
involvement and contribution were the highest ever in 1989. The Sioux City Mayor's Community
Retreat (April 1990) involved over 100 area leaders in articulating our future. From everyone,
we're asking, "be involved and give back," in response to what Siouxland has given.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
Give your community a way to grow. The Siouxland Initiative didn't wait for
inspiration or for "adoption" by outside companies. We went out and worked for the
support of our own business community, and we built a business nursery for new
enterprises. "Stone soup" is alive and bubbling in Sioux City!
Use "possibility thinking" to overcome arbitrary boundaries and find
common cause. The Tri-State Collaborative has made some new relationships -- and
even more, it has discovered relationships that could have been strong and active for years.
It may be the job of governmental units to set limits, but it's the job of creative, visionary
people to find possibilities and cause the cooperation that makes them into reality.
Get rid of separate agendas. As the Multi-Hazard Plan shows, community agencies
work better when they combine their goals and coordinate their activities. The result is an
enabling network of positive responses to problems in clear, efficient ways. Good service
to people is more important than protecting one's own turf, it's more cost-effective, and it
feels better!
Make your young talent feel valuable. Our two leadership programs have paid
dividends already. In all of our projects from United Way to the Multi-Hazard Plan, we've
seen hard work, innovation and achievement from young leaders, the ones who can and
will succeed our present civic and business executives. They deserve our encouragement.
Anticipate crises rather than waiting for them to happen. Nobody can do this
well enough, especially when community safety and wellbeing are at stake, but economic
declines or large-scale emergencies don't hold off until we can get around to them. Of
course it's not fun to plan for events you hope will never happen. Too often, however, if
you wait until it's broke, you can't fix it. By contrast, a proactive attitude is the only way
to prevent crises or minimize their effects, and it builds confidence and morale.
Keep the ball rolling. Once you see an approach that produces results, recycle it into
new programs and methods, and involve more people and groups across the community in
making them happen. Right now, our Sioux City Vision 2020 program, the United Way,
and the Mayor's Community Retreat are doing just those things - building on past
successes and aiming to get more of the community to plan and share. If there's a better
way, you can bet we're looking for it.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
CHARLOTTE
MECKLENBURG
NORTH CAROLINA
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of acommunity: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Council/Manager POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
below 18 years 23.8 (1989 est)
12.8 (
"
(1988 or most recent) 486, 165 (7/89)
18-25
)
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
26-35
18.6 (
"
)
(1970-1988)
(7/89)
21.1 (
"
+20.29
36-50
)
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65.
13.9 (
"
)
(1988 or most recent) 900/sq. mile
9.7 (
"
Over 65
)
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY
Black
26.5 (1980 census)
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic
. I (
)
Manufacturing
15%
Asian
.7
Trade (retail/wholesale)
27%
.4(
"
Other
)
Agriculture
less than 1%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME
$21.148 (1980 census
Services
22%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
83(+980census)
(percentage pre-WWII)
less
than
8%
(1989)
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
2.3%
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS 180 human
service not for profits.
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Bob Humphreys
TITLE
Chairman
ORGANIZATION
Chattotte-Mecklenburg Citizens Forum
ADDRESS
c/o Royal Insurance - 9300 Arrowpoint Blvd.
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Charlotte, NC 28210
TELEPHONE
(704) 522-2663
SIGNED
Robert Humphrings Pr
DATE
4/19/90
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME
Thomas M. Flynn
TITLE
Assistant to the City Manager
ORGANIZATION
City of Charlotte
ADDRESS
600 E. Fourth Street
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Charlotte, NC 28202
TELEPHONE SIGNED DATE
Tom Phyn
4/19/90
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
T
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz., to present the finalists' cases.
1.
Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
(A) Charlotte and the surrounding Mecklenburg County area are a
rapidly growing community. Ranked 39th in population size (SMSA)
last year, Charlotte-Mecklenburg is adjusting to its "big league"
status and the increased competition found on the national level.
As Charlotte-Mecklenburg competes for new business, new jobs,
new sources of revenue and an enhanced standard of living for all
its citizens, a number of issues face the community.
One of the most significant of these issues involves less
advantaged sections of the City and County. It is vitally important
that as Charlotte-Mecklenburg grows and prospers, all sections of
the community share the benefits of its success.
A second important issue facing Charlotte-Mecklenburg focuses
on the area's positive identify as an attractive, caring and
ambitious community. These essential qualities cannot be neglected
if Charlotte-Mecklenburg is to retain its leadership position in the
1990's.
(B) These issues have been the focal point of community-wide
efforts involving citizen participation, volunteerism and
public/private/non-profit cooperation. The Citizens Forum, formed
in 1984, exemplifies all three of these efforts.
The Citizens Forum currently has over 100 members including
representatives from the business community, neighborhoods, real
estate development, the academic community and non-profit
organizations. Their primary purpose is to spur constructive
community-wide dialog aimed at resolving community issues.
(C) Among its successes, the Citizens Forum authored a policy
redirecting growth, developed a public/private housing partnership,
and organized an economic development project (Project Catalyst) in
a low-income neighborhood.
(D) Last year (88-89), the Citizens Forum sponsored a Civic Index
project in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. As a result of this
comprehensive, broad-based citizen effort, local officials are
working together to develop a community vision, philanthropic
organizations are broadening their fundraising base, a citizens
review of services is underway to ensure geographic equity and a
citizens panel is reviewing the elective process.
The results of the Civic Index project are very promising, but
very preliminary. In addition to this project,
Charlotte-Mecklenburg is successfully involving its citizens,
volunteers and public/private/non-profit groups in a variety of
other cooperative efforts.
These efforts, which include low-income housing, the arts and
sciences, and response to Hurricane Hugo, are discussed later in
this application. They are indicative of the community's response
to broader concerns of equitable growth and maintaining a positive
identify.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg's Housing Program is one of the most
innovative and progressive programs of its type. Along with
providing scattered-site public housing for both working and
non-working poor people, the program seeks to help residents become
self sufficient.
These goals have largely been achieved through a partnership of
business, government and non-profit agencies. As a result of
cooperative City-County employment training efforts, along with
supporting County social service funds, a large number of public
housing residents today are working in meaningful jobs.
At the same time, public housing stock has increased by 693
units since 1986, and 16% of existing public housing has been
improved. Charlotte also boasts of the nation's most successful
Habitat for Humanity program. To date, Habitat volunteers have
built over 85 new homes in Charlotte.
Other efforts include: the Housing Partnership, a
public/private venture formed in 1989, which is building over 100
homes for the working poor; and the Charlotte Housing Authority,
which developed two programs (Gateway and Stepping stone) to provide
100 families from public housing with the opportunity to own their
first homes.
The last five years have seen a renaissance of the arts and
sciences in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. Since 1986, the community has
built or renovated 382,600 sq. ft. of space devoted to the arts and
sciences.
This includes: a major expansion to Discovery Place, voted one
of the nation's best "hands-on" science museums; an expanded and
renovated Mint Museum of Art; a total renovation to Spirit Square, a
thriving uptown community arts center; and a new Afro-American
Cultural Center. During this time combined attendance at these
facilities increased by 60%. In addition, the community is
currently building the North Carolina Performing Arts Center in
uptown Charlotte.
The success of the arts and sciences in Charlotte-Mecklenburg
can be directly attributed to public/private/non-profit partnerships
and volunteer efforts to raise funds, develop programs and operate
facilities. Charlotte ranks third nationally in per capita arts
giving, and the community currently is raising funds for an
operating endowment for arts and science groups. Current
fund-raising also includes a region-wide campaign to raise $25
million for the new North Carolina Performing Arts Center.
In a few furious hours, Hurricane Hugo rearranged the
priorities of thousands of people in Charlotte-Mecklenburg and the
Carolinas. Packing 100 mile-per hour winds, Hugo toppled 80,000
area trees, closed 1,500 miles of street and left 475,000 residents
without electricity. The community responded with a whirlwind of
its own.
Within minutes of the storm's departure, emergency efforts were
underway. A volunteer coordination center was set up by the United
Way; a Hugo Task Force, made up of representatives from a variety of
public, private and non-profit agencies, was organized by the
Charlotte Chamber; a "Hugo Hot Line" was established by the City;
and a City-County Emergency Operations Center was set up to
coordinate the response.
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
The area's recent housing efforts began when community, church,
business, and neighborhood leaders agreed that not all sections of
Charlotte were equally benefiting from its growth. This led to the
Housing Symposium in 1987, sponsored by the City of Charlotte.
The Housing Symposium significantly heightened public awareness
of the low-income housing program. It also unified efforts to make
low-income housing a top priority in the community.
Since then, the community's housing programs have been
organized to capitalize on each program's individual strengths.
Each program operates separately, drawing on the City's resources
when needed. To this extent, the City organizes the overall
program.
The recent development of arts and sciences in the community is
based on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Cultural Action Plan. Adopted
in 1975, this plan was spearheaded by the private sector. Its
purpose was to enhance Charlotte-Mecklenburg as a special and
unique place to live.
The Arts and Science Council coordinated implementing the plan;
while separate community groups championed individual projects.
For example, the donation of a substantial private art collection
to the Mint Museum of Art prompted public support of bonds for its
expansion.
Another example is the North Caroling Performing Arts Center.
This project became a reality when NCNB Corporation and the Belk
Family donated valuable uptown land for its construction. The
private sector then took the lead in raising $30 million from City
and State governments. Another $25 million is being raised from
private sources.
The widespread devastation caused by Hurricane Hugo prompted an
immediate community response. Shortly after activating a joint
City-County Emergency Response Center, officials realized that
residents had more needs than standard municipal services could
meet.
In order to gain a full appreciation of the scope of these
needs, the City activated "Hugo Hot Line" within 24 hours. This
information and referral center was instrumental in developing a
effective response to the crisis.
To support this effort, the United Way set up a volunteer and
social service referral center. These combined responses provided
immediate information during the emergency phase.
A full recovery from the storm would take a lot longer.
Long-term efforts were coordinated by a public/private/non-profit
task force that was established two weeks after Hurricane Hugo.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Habitat for
700 volunteers
Construction of low-
Humanity
income owner occupied
housing
Housing
12 board members
Leveraging private funds
Partnership
to build low-income
housing
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
8 board members
Provision of government
Housing Authority
assisted low-income
housing
Arts and Science
37 organizations
Central planning and
Council
fundraising
Discovery Place
4,900 volunteers
Hands-on science museum
and members
Spirit Square
2,000 volunteers
Community arts center
and members
Mint Museum
1,100 volunteers
Art museum
N.C. Performing
800 volunteers
Fund raising for
Arts Center
performing arts center
United Way
1,800 Hugo
Emergency aid to the
volunteers
needy
Hugo Task Force
20 board members
Coordinating private
efforts to aid the
recovery
City of Charlotte
4,700 employees
Emergency response and
government clean-up
efforts
Mecklenburg County
2,300 employees
Emergency response and
emergency social
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected services by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
Habitat for Humanity has strict guidelines requiring
prospective owners to actively participate in the building of new
homes-not only theirs but also a neighbors. These guidelines help
in the actual building of homes. More importantly, they serve as a
catalyst in providing a sense of togetherness in Habitat
neighborhoods.
All area arts and science organizations have volunteer outreach
programs, marketing programs, and membership and fundraising
drives. Additionally, these groups collectively sponsor First Night
Charlotte, a family-oriented celebration held on New Year's Eve that
attracts over 30,000 people. Charlotte-Mecklenburg school students
are taking part in a "buy-a-brick" program to raise funds for the
North Carolina Performing Arts Center.
While an accurate measurement of citizen involvement from
Hurricane Hugo is not possible, it is safe to say that virtually
every resident had some degree of involvement. This involvement came
through neighbor helping neighbor, and more formally from citizens
volunteering through the United Way. To date, over 1,800 people
have volunteered through the United Way. Volunteers have removed
trees for the elderly and handicapped; operated temporary shelters
and kitchens; and delivered food, ice, blankets, and candles to
shut-ins.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Velva Woollen/1318 Queens Rd.W/28207/332-2816/Former City Title Council member
Address/Phone
Betty Chafin Rash/P.O.Box 32184/28232/372-2099/Public Affairs Consultant
Susan Hancock/P.O.Box 34397/28234/376-2054/Exec.Dir. Habitat for Humanity
Deborah Harris/400 S. Tryon St/Suite 1946/28285/382-1815/President, N.C.
P.A.C. Foundation Board
Freda Nicholson/301 N. Tryon St/28202/372-6261/Exec.Dir. Discovery Place
Mike Marsicano/214 N. Church St/28202/372-9667/President,Arts and Science
Council
John Harris/Bissell Companies/3770 Morrison Blvd/28211/366-9841/
Chairman, Hugo Task Force
Marie Shook/P.0.Box 31787/28231/336-2472/Asst. County Manager
Vivian Hamilton/301 S. Brevard St/28202/372-7170/V.P of Community
Resources, United Way
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
In seeking bond funding for capital improvement projects, the
arts and sciences have met limited opposition. The opposing forces
have largely come from less advantaged sections of the community who
viewed these organizations as elitist.
Federal guidelines required that Charlotte-Mecklenburg bid the
job of Hurricane Hugo debris removal to private contractors.
However, because of the size and complexity of the job, many private
contractors were unwilling to bid. Others who started the job were
quickly overwhelmed.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
To counter the elitist perception, arts and science
organizations teamed with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System to
bring art education into the classroom. Students visit a museum or
art center at least six times before they graduate. The National
Endowment for the arts recently recognized this arts education
program with a $1 million grant, the largest grant ever given for
arts education.
All building projects for the arts and sciences must obtain at
least half of their funding from private sources. A Cultural Action
Plan Update, funded by the City and County, is looking at new ways
to pay for arts and science programs. Integral to this solution is
a $10 million arts endowment funded entirely by private sources.
When it became clear that private contractors were unable to
remove storm debris piled along streets, the City declared a fire
emergency. This action enabled the community to take advantage of
State and City crews in its cleanup efforts.
Also slower private contractors were allowed to default on
their contracts without paying a penalty allowing the City to
expedite the cleanup.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Charlotte-Mecklenburg points with pride to its long history of
volunteer involvement. Board members of volunteer agencies
represent a diversity of interests and backgrounds. Top corporate
executives sit alongside homemakers on many boards. The extent of
Charlotte-Mecklenburg's volunteer involvement can perhaps best be
seen by the United Way. Their local fundraising drive involved
5,000 volunteers last year and United Way agencies employ over 750
people as volunteers on boards.
The makeup of agency boards is crucial to their success.
Several efforts help in identifying potential board members. Among
these are: United Way's training in community "boardsmanship"; the
Charlotte Chamber's Leadership Program for rising business
executives; UNC-Charlotte's Leadership Charlotte Program for adults
and youth; and Focus Leadership, a program targeted toward emerging
black leaders.
Sources of private funds in Charlotte include corporations and
private individuals. Charlotte-Mecklenburg corporations give $4.61
more per person than the median per capita across the country.
Further strengthening the values of volunteerism and
philanthropy is the Foundation for the Carolinas. Established in
1958 the Foundation assists individual and corporate donors in
achieving a variety of charitable objectives. This year the
Foundation has accepted responsibility for the "Carolina Gives"
program designed to broaden regional philanthropic participation.
These efforts are a result of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Civic Index
project.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
As Charlotte-Mecklenburg grows, it needs to strengthen the
vision/pride component of the Civic Index.
Community pride has never been a problem in Charlotte-Mecklen-
burg. In fact, it is currently at an all-time high as the area
celebrates the success of its new NBA basketball team (the
Charlotte Hornets), and a new 25,000-seat coliseum.
Community pride is also evident in less tangible things such as
the close-knit feel of area neighborhoods, the "can do" attitude
found in business and government, and the feeling among residents
that their voice can make a difference.
But while community pride is unmistakable, there is currently
no common community vision or process for defining such a vision.
That is not to suggest there are no shared values.
Among the more universal values are: economic vitality,
livability, quality education, a safe and crime free environment,
and inclusion of all citizens in community decision-making. But
within the community values differ, producing a variety of visions.
Several efforts are now underway to develop a community vision.
As recommended by the Civic Index Project, The Citizens Forum hopes
to organize a regional public policy research group whose first
task will be developing a regional visioning process.
Other efforts are being undertaken by community elected
officials and Charlotte Chamber representatives. These groups
recently spent time independently developing their visions for
Charlotte-Mecklenburg. They later spent a day sharing the results
oftheir vision processes and developing a plan for jointly pursuing
a common vision.
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10. a the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
The success Charlotte-Mecklenburg has enjoyed over the years is
mainly attributable to the intensity of each citizen's community
pride and personal commitment to solve area problems. This personal
dedication, rather than any novel approach, is the "success formula"
with which great things have been accomplished.
An important ingredient in this formula is the business
community. In Charlotte-Mecklenburg the business community has
taken on the responsibility of promoting government bond packages to
the local electorate. This has led to voter approval of all City
and County bond packages since 1986, totalling over $300 million.
These projects have included road improvements, water and sewer
improvements, school expansions and additions, a performing arts
center, and neighborhood improvement projects in disadvantaged areas
of the City.
Building upon the commitment of volunteer and philanthropic
efforts, the corporate boardrooms of the community lead all private
fundraising drives. When a new company moves to the area, business
leaders pay a welcome visit to discuss Charlotte's spirit of
giving. These congenial visits have proven quite effective in
cultivating a similar attitude with the new company and its
employees.
Another crucial ingredient in the community's success formula
is planning that is built on mutual cooperation between the public,
private, and non-profit sections. The community is known for
working together to develop and implement long-range plans.
Examples of this include: The Cultural Action Plan (currently being
updated); the United Way Corporate Giving Plan; and the Housing
Policy Plan developed from the Housing Symposium in 1987.
The Hugo Hot Line and United Way information and referral
service centers were both key ingredients to the community's
response and recovery from Hurricane Hugo. This quick, coordinated
response was made possible by years of cooperation between
government and private agencies. The United Way Hugo response
effort is already being used a a model for emergency response
planning by United Ways in other cities.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
NATIONAL
CIVIC
LEAGUE
M-E-M-O-R-A-N-D-U-M
TO:
1990 All-America Cities
FROM: Christopher T. Gates. Vice President
DATE: July N, 1990
RE:
Agenda for August 6, 1990
The follows: schedule for the events surrounding the Rose Garden Ceremony is as
7:30 am-8:30 am
Breakfast at J.W. Marriott, "Heart & Cannon" Rooms
For everyone who will be attending either the White House ceremony
and/or post ceremony luncheon. Press may attend, but press meals will
not be provided.
J.W. Marriott at 1331 Pennsylvania, NW (202) 393-2000
8:30 am
Board buses for the White House
9:00 am-10:00 am
White House briefing
We will be met by EL representative from the Office of Intergovernmental
Affairs, who will brief us on the details of the ceremony.
10:00 am-10:30 am AAC Award Ceremony, White House Rose Garden
President Bush will open the ceremony with comments. The mayor* from
each of the ten All-America Cities will receive a plaque from the
President. A picture will be taken of each mayor as he/she receives
that plaque. A group picture of the ten mayors will be taken with the
President after all ten communities have been recognized
10:30 am-11:00 am Press opportunities / White House Location
hour Triangle
Time is allowed for the press to ask questions of the community
representatives, take pictures, etc.
11:00 am
Board buses for Rayburn House Office Building
11:30 am-1:30 pm Congressional Luncheon, Gold Room, Rayburn HOB
Luncheon honoring the ten 1990 All-America Cities. All those attending
provided. ceremony are invited. Press may attend. but press meals will not be
1601 GRANT STREET, SUITE 250, DENVER, CO 80203 303-832-5615
POTUS makes remarks and then presents
the award to each mayor w/a blurb about
each city.
DO WE WRITE THE SHORT BLURB TOO?
If not, let's my to met to lift the language will do so too - much and then from
the summaries - because Intergout saine
Ilm ROUTE TO:
PLEASE
VOLUME 15, NUMBER 1
City Hall
JANUARY1990
The Municipal Government Newsletter
Digest
urban trendwatch
redistricting
Supreme Court Strikes Another Blow Against Patronage-In a ruling
involving the State of Illinois but with ramifications at all other levels of
battles loom
government, the Supreme Court ruled that "low-level public employees"
cannot be hired, promoted, transferred or recalled based on partisan political
considerations. Most observers said the decision does not cover policymaking
for many cities
or cabinet-level positions. "To the victor belong only those spoils that may be
While many cities worry about
constitutionally obtained," said Justice William J. Brennan, who wrote the 5-4
the accuracy of the final '90 census
decision. "Promotions, transfers, and recalls after layoffs based on political
population and housing counts,
affiliation or support are an impermissable infringement on the First
activists prepare to contest official
Amendment rights of public employees." Justice Antonin Scalia, dissenting,
redistricting plans with their own.
said patronage "may sometimes be a reasonable choice, and should therefore
More powerful personal
be left to the judgment of the people's elected representatives."
computers and new, sophisticated
software packages will make it a lot
Don't Count on the Peace Dividend, Mayors Told-The savings from cuts
in defense already have been spent, House Ways and Means Committee
easier for those displeased with new
political boundaries to sue in order
Chairman Dan Rostenkowski told the U.S. Conference of Mayors. "We need to
slash spending and raise taxes merely to get to ground zero," he said.
to get their plans adopted.
Experts predict that official
All-America Cities Welcome Coveted Award for Honor, Value-A total of
redistricting plans following the
113 cities entered this year's All-America City Award Competition-a record.
1990 census will produce an
All were striving not only for the honor of being named one of what has
amazing amount of litigation at all
become a select band of 400+, but also hoping that they could add the title
levels of government. Controversies
over what the final election districts
and logo to their letterheads, brochures, and even police cars for the next 12
months.
should be could go on for years.
For during the 41 years the National Civic League has sponsored the
One observer quipped:
contest, it has grown in stature and importance among city officials to become
"Law schools may even start
the most important prize to win during their terms in office.
setting up new courses in census/
Not only does being named an All-America City help mayors and council
redistricting law so new attorneys
members get re-elected and city managers keep their jobs, but it has become a
can cash in on the bonanza."
key marketing tool in the municipal economic development, tourism, and
The census data to be used in
convention attraction industries.
drawing up redistricting plans will
So this year's winning cities have turned on the publicity machines to
Please Turn to Pdge 2
proudly proclaim their official All-America City designation.
The 1990 winners are: Abilene, Texas; Bakersfield, Calif.; Charlotte, N.C.;
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho; Hamlet, N.C.; Harrisburg, Pa.; Sioux City, Iowa; South
in this issue
Gate, Calif.; South St. Paul, Minn.; and Tampa, Fla.
The 10 communities were chosen based on community leadership, citizen
City tells what didn't happen
Page 3
participation, government performance, civic education, and community
Workforce education ideas
Page 4
volunteerism and philanthropy. For the second year, the competition was CO-
sponsored by The Allstate Foundation, an offshoot of the Allstate Insurance
Lure of incinerator revenue
Page 6
Co., which is part of the Sears, Roebuck empire.
The value of winning an All-America City award has not been lost on the
Slow-growth policy dilemma
Page 7
nation's big municipalities.
"The 1990 applications included a 39 per cent increase in large cities
Copyright 1990 by City Hall Communica-
applying for the award compared with 1989," said Christopher Gates, vice
tions. All rights reserved. Reproduction with-
president of the National Civic League.
out express written permission of the editor
is strictly forbidden. ISSN: 0190-0005.
OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate the City of Bakersfield
Kern County
California
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure-
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of a community: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
1 OF GOVERNMENT
Council-Manager
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
JLATION
below 18 years
48,881
(1988 or most recent)
18-25
21,966
161,750 (1989)
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
26-35
35,294
(1970-1988)
133%
36-50
20,364
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65
19,798
(1988 or most recent)
1,739/sq. mile
Over 65
15,447
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY
Black
10.42%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic
19.32%
Manufacturing
5.5%
Asian & Others 5.08%
Trade (retail/wholesale)
22.1%
Other
Agriculture
13.8%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME
$28,018
Services
17.6%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL
12%
(percentage pre-WWII)
20%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
10.4%
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS
250
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Mr. George Martin
TITLE
President
ORGANIZATION
Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce
ADDRESS
1800 30th Street
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Bakersfierd CA 93301
PHONE
808/322-305
SNED
DATE
4-16-90
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME
Ms. Ethel Landers
TITLE
Community Relations Manager
ORGANIZATION
Pacific Bell
ADDRESS
200 New Stine Road, Room 260
CITY/STATE/ZIP Bakersfield, CA 93309
TELEPHONE
805/398-4205
SIGNED
like m Landen
DATE 4-16-90
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to
se the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
ix, Ariz., to present the finalists' cases.
1.
Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
Oil is our community's life blood. In 1985, Bakersfield was the fastest
growing city in California. Kern County was and still is the top ranking
oil-producing county in the United States. Tax revenues, service com-
panies, retail businesses, non-profit agencies, churches and schools all
thrived on vibrant oil revenues. However, in December 1985 oil prices
plummeted as OPEC nations united to choke domestic oil production.
Bakersfield ached as thousands of middle managers, office workers, labor-
ers and people in supporting businesses found themselves without jobs.
Tax revenues plummeted, threatening schools, libraries and social ser-
vices. Non-profit agencies, depending on corporate and individual dona-
tions, suffered heavily, resulting in a decrease in services provided to
the community. Local business, labor, non-profit organizations, govern-
ment, and citizens united to render assistance to those in need and to
rejuvenate the community. These grassroot organizations have applied
creative solutions to both the economic problems of hunger and education,
as well as the social problem of teen pregnancy.
Kern County is the third top agricultural-producing county in the
United States, yet hunger threatens the elderly, the working poor
and the homeless. Census estimates indicate nearly 58,000 people live
at or below the poverty level, with local agencies estimating this number
to be 80,000. An increasing number of Bakersfield residents faced the
multiple problems of unemployment, homelessness and poverty, with many
being non-English speaking. How could our community serve these special
people? The Golden Empire Gleaners! Over four million pounds of food
have been collected and distributed since 1986 without using one tax
dollar. Volunteers range from teens to senior citizens, from farmers
to ministers, all working together to collect food and eliminate hunger.
Though the economy slowed, Bakersfield's population continued to rapidly
increase. Schools and libraries needed more staff, more books, more
facilities. Thousands of Hispanic children required bilingual educa-
tional materials to reach their full potential. In two years, a grass-
roots effort by City and County officials, business leaders and private
citizens raised $2.1 million to save the libraries. $90,000 was spent on
books and materials for the children's library, $20,000 on Spanish langu-
age books and audio/video cassettes to serve the Hispanic population,
and $47,000 to refurbish and computerize three book mobiles to bring the
library to senior citizens, migrant children and remote schools across
the 8,000 square-mile County.
Combating the highest teen pregnancy rate in California, Aunt Cherie's
Home, the only non-profit agency in the San Joaquin Valley offering
shelter for unwed mothers, started in 1985. Suffering from a drop in
donations due to Bakersfield's economic plight, this non-profit organi-
zation was able to continue and even increase services since 1986. Over
100 local businesses, 70 churches, 12 non-profit agencies, local schools
and local media, with information sharing efforts including 285 community
meetings, 140 press conferences and 52 school meetings groups enabled
Aunt Cherie's Home to continue and increase services to the community.
Over 1,200 pregnant girls have completed their pregnancies at this home.
Less than 10% of this number have repeated an unplanned pregnancy.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
Four members of a small Bible study group determined to help alleviate
local hunger formed the Golden Empire Gleaners (a). They soon discovered
that 20% to 60% of the County-grown crops were culled, plowed under or
destroyed depending on climate and market conditions. Today, 300 volun-
teers of all ages and races glean from fields, markets and manufacturers.
A converted granary is now a warehouse for processing and storage. A 40-
member board directs fundraising and gleaning and distribution services,
as well as the following programs: Adopt-A-Family, assisting families in
crisis through personal and community support, including food, shelter
and education; Breakfast Club, identifying and aiding children in our
public schools whose learning process is hampered by poor nutrition; and
the Senior Sack Program, providing 2,000 low-income senior citizens with
two bags of groceries, twice per month. From 1986 to 1989, the Gleaners
increased collection and distribution from 750,000 pounds to 4 million
pounds of food, in less than four years!
The Kern County Library Foundation was formed to lead the Support-The-
Library (b) effort and match the County's contribution for the system's
new headquarters and main branch. This Foundation raised over $1.5 mil-
lion through members representing City/County government, businesses
and schools. The contributions this effort has made to the library
system include, to date: Several IBM computers and electric typewriters
for the Computer Room; a reader printer for the Genealogy Room; two
Apple comput-ers and storytelling pit, including automation, for the
Children's Room; slide projectors, screens, etc., for two conference
rooms; cassette players, etc., for the audio visual room; IBM computer
system for the Literacy Program, MAC II color computer system with laser
printers, desk-top publishing program, etc., for the Graphics Artist
section; nine VHS cassette records for nine library branches; a grand
piano for the main branch's auditorium; the Carlton Watkins album of 1988
Photographs of Kern County (for which the Foundation was bidding against
Getty Museum) and a statue of "Mother Bear and Cubs", by the renown
artist, Buffano. This effort indicated to City and County officials the
strong supports and importance of education to Bakersfield citizens.
Aunt Cherie's Home (c) opened in response to the growing teenage preg-
nancy problem. Services include proper pre-natal care and nutrition,
shelter, guidance, advocacy and love, and volunteers work with clients
encouraging strong self-esteem and responsible decision making. Origin-
ally housed was 17 girls out of the founder's private home. When the
rent-free use of another house was offered, the community had to make the
house liveable and outfit the home. Eighteen months and 21 babies later,
Aunt Cherie's Home was forced to move. Again, the community provided the
down payment for a 4,000 sq. ft. home. Continued support, 95% of which
is from small donations, keep the home operating, i.e., monthly mortgage,
etc. By year's end, Cherie's will operate a licensed County residential
facility for pregnant girls and young mothers with their babies, again
all through donations. Outreach efforts include reuniting families, as
well as reducing promiscuity among high school students. Successes in-
clude fewer than 10% repeat unplanned pregnancies, a high adoption rate,
elevated community awareness to the causes and prevention of teenage
promiscuity and pregnancy, and over 1,200 healthy babies of all races.
Leadership, citizen participation, volunteerism, philanthropy, coopera-
tion, government performance, inter-group relations, information sharing,
plus vision and pride were highly evident in the above projects.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
Because of the evident hunger problem facing thousands of the population
of Bakersfield and Kern County contrasted overwhelmingly with the abun-
dance of food production in this same community, four businessmen inves-
tigated the possibility of using the surplus food to feed the hungry and,
in doing so, created the Golden Empire Gleaners, the only surplus agri-
cultural distribution center in California. Out of a small Bible study,
came a nucleus of determined people who mobilized volunteers from Bakers-
field and other communities in the County. Because of their business
expertise, they soon enlisted help from key community leaders as well,
and networked with Second Harvest, a national Food Bank. This effort has
grown to an Executive Director overseeing 300 volunteers serving 125 non-
profit distribution sites, reporting to a Board of Directors of progres-
sive leaders in the community. Fundraising efforts include tennis tourn-
aments, Casino Night and concerts. Businesses, churches, the media and
thousands of citizens support the Gleaners through canned food drives
throughout the year.
While contemplating whether to build the new library headquarters and
main branch, the Board of Supervisors formed a library committee to con-
duct a feasibility study and make recommendations regarding same. This
committee realized that County funding would only provide the "basic
building" and not the amenities necessary for the library to be func-
tional! From this committee's investigations, the Kern County Library
Foundation was formed. Their purpose was to provide all special equip-
ment and other items that County funds would not provide - all through
donations. This committe mobilized the community in an unbelievable way,
even while oil prices continued to fall, adding increased pressure on
public services through tax short-fall. Volunteers from the school
system, businesses, government officials and private citizens joined the
fundraising effort by forming groups like "Friends of the Library" and
raising $82,000 alone through collection jars in branch libraries,
selling donated items and by manning an information booth for 300 hours
in a local shopping mall. The Foundation raised $1.5 million, as well
with over 56,000 hours of diversified volunteer service culminating in
attracting 22,000 citizens to the Foundation's eleven-day opening cere-
mony for the Beale Memorial Library. All activities were supported
by electronic and print media coverage, in both Spanish and English.
Aunt Cherie's Home was opened after the founder suffered a family crisis
with her own teenaged daughter. Realizing the closest shelter for unwed
pregnant girls over 100 miles away, the founder approached local health
professionals and educators for direction. Discovering that the preg-
nancy rate for teens in Kern County is 61% higher than the California
average, Cherie Smith realized that thousands of other teens needed
direction and advocacy. From meager beginnings in her home, the volun-
teers, staff and a 17-member board now team with representatives from
Crisis Pregnancy Center, Teen Challenge, Bethany Homeless Shelter, Howie
Steinhart Prison Ministries and many schools and churches, all pulling
together to help eliminate unwanted pregnancies. The Home includes beds
for ten women and three babies, and features an on-site house mother,
who supervises the girls for room and board only - no salary.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
The Gleaners
Volunteer operational/main-
452 73,672 hrs. annually, incl. gleaning,
tenance staff
facility maintenance and fundraising.
Shell oil & Occidental Petro-
40 480 hrs. annually with outreach
leum Employees Association
grams and capital improvements.
Bakersfield Board of Real-
2,250
2,500 hrs. annually with canned food
tors; City/Cty. employees
drives.
Boys Scouts/Girl Scouts
400 3,000 hrs. annually in misc. areas.
Bksfld. City Schools
75 225 hrs. annually to coordinate canned
food drives at 25 school sites.
Support-The-Library
Kern Cty Library Found.
16 15,000 hours to raise $1.5 milion
Kern High School District
45 9,000 hours in programs, transporta-
Kern County Supt. of Schools
tion and publicity
Library staff/their families
90 Donated 4,000 hours in misc. areas
Celebration committee
24 Donated 10,600 hours in misc. areas
Friends of the Library
30 300 hours in the shopping mall
Misc. volunteers
447 From 87 different assn., in all phases
of this effort
Aunt Cherie's Home
Teen Challenge
55 6,600 hrs. doing physical labor to
maintain the home.
Contel
20 2,400 hrs. in labor/fundraising
70 Local Churches
210 7,560 hrs. making baby-related items,
fundraising and educating.
Misc. volunteers
485 From 11 different organizations,
providing construction services,
time as role models, food, etc.
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
Manpower is provided to the Gleaners by Victory Outreach drug rehabili-
tation clients, senior citizens and church members. The senior citizens
offer knowledge and experience, with the rehab clients offering physical
strength and a willingness to learn. The Grain program provides work
experience for needy clients, with Adopt-A-Family providing assessment
and referral for local jobs. Thousands of citizens throughout the com-
munity are involved annually in canned Christmas tree drives, not only
through non-profit organizations, but also through business offices in
the city that have even replaced their office Christmas trees with canned
food trees, donating all collections to the Gleaners.
Hundreds of school children, parents, teachers, librarians and service
organizations volunteered time and talent to make the Support-The-Library
program a success. The information booth in the shopping malls alone
attracted thousands of individuals, collected $2,000 and providing
exceptional publicity for the Support-The-Library effort.
Aunt Cherie's Home has volunteers from 82 different churches and organi-
zations with previous experience dealing with unplanned pregnancy and/or
adoption. Clients cook and keep house while living at the home, and Teen
Challenge members provide home and property maintenance.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
(a) Mr. John Lynch, Rt. 5, Box 502, 93307, 805/366-8394, Petroleum Mktg.
Exec (ret. ) ; Mr. Jerry Stanners, P.O. Bin 440, 93302, 805/395-7284, CEO,
The Bakersfield Californian; Mr. Gordon Fisher, 3651 Pegasus Dr., #122,
93308, 805/393-2550, President., Agrifuture, Inc.; (b) Mr. Don Murfin,
3105 Flintridge Dr., 93306, 805/872-5399, retired Supt., Kern High School
District; Ms. Mary K. Shell, 1415 Truxtun Ave., #602, 93301, 805/861-
2290, Kern Cty. Board of Supervisors; Ms. Cynthia Meek, 2215 "A" St.,
93301, 805/323-1028, Principal, St. Francis School; (c) Ms. Cherie Smith,
5500 Lennox Ave., #37, 93309, 805/324-7806, Founder; Ms. Mary Bezdek,
7414 Eliso ct., 93309, 805/397-0874, Board President., Medical Society
Auxilary; Dave Dixon, Ph.D., 5329 Office Center. ct., 93309, 805/395-
0145, Corporate Consultant -- ALL ADDRESSES ARE IN BAKERSFIELD, CA.
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
Efforts to organize a volunteer-operated organization to gather local
surplus food for distribution to 125 existing agencies was initially
perceived as a challenge to the funding base of the Kern County Food
Bank, a government-assisted agency. This agency actively worked to
obstruct the formation of the Gleaners.
The oil crisis made it difficult to solicit funds for the Support-The-
Library program. People were focusing on providing food and shelter for
their families, as they were losing jobs and businesses were filing
bankruptcy at the rate of 250 per month (for a four-year period).
As Aunt Cherie's Home was a grassroots effort, public trust had to be
gained, which was difficult in a strained economy. It also had to be
proven that there was not biased involvement with pro-choice/pro-life
issues.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
Once Gleaner Board members communicated with government representatives
their absolute resolve to remain totally independent from any government
assistance, the challenge was removed and the Food Bank became supportive
of the Gleaners organization.
Communication via local television and newspapers explained the Save-The-
Library plight. Citizens quickly rallied. Even though the economy
improved slowly, donations were accepted as long-term pledges. Indi-
viduals and groups were recognized for their efforts at celebrations and
by media coverage.
Communication regarding Aunt Cherie's through schools, speaking engage-
ments at various clubs and business organizations, plus media coverage
helped educate the community and garnered public support. As families
experienced good results, confidence spread.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Volunteerism and Philanthropy
As demonstrated by our three projects, Bakersfield citizens and busi-
nesses give generously of their time and money to solve true needs. This
strength began when Bakersfield was a small isolated community, and has
continued due to committed organizations and clear communication via a
responsive, competitive media.
Other examples include (1) the Kern River Parkway project, where 2,000
volunteers donated over 15,000 hours to landscape several miles of bike
path along the Kern River; (2) the local United Way, with 60 Board
members from all walks of life, who recently completed a community "needs
assessment" to assist volunteers in deciding where donations should be
targeted; (3) the local AIDS Advisory Board, with 23 members, who help
assess the impact of AIDS on citizens, services, government and business;
and (4) the Kern Soccer Park that opened in 1988 as the largest soccer
complex in North America, (with 15 fields) which was constructed with
$200,000 in cash donations and $1.8 million in donations of materials and
labor by local unions and businesses.
Fundraising for these projects was accomplished entirely through
volunteers.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Community Vision and Pride
Bakersfield has been poorly perceived and has often been portrayed in
films and on television as a location where people don't want to live,
resulting in a lack of community pride. Projects that indicate con-
structive positive steps to reverse this perception include (1) the
Kern Economic Development Corporation's and the Bakersfield Development
Agency's public/private partnerships to aggressively focus on diver-
sifying our economy; (2) City and County governments' working together on
planned growth in 2010; (3) the local newspaper's, The Bakersfield
Californian, and KGEO-FM's conducting of the first "I Love Bakersfield
Celebration" in 1989; (4) Bakersfield's hosting of the 1987 California
Police Olympics; (5) the hosting of an International Youth Baseball
Tournament in 1990; (6) the hosting of the Western Regional Soccer
Tournament, with 20,000 players from the western U.S., and (7) Bakers-
field's "Project 2000", a unique public/private partnership targeting
"average" kids to prevent drop-outs and encourage success in college and
employment. Additionally, one of the local law firms sponsors a Business
and Finance Conference, with 3,000 attendees returning each year from
around the world to meet and hear issues and perspectives from speakers
such as Gerald Ford, John Conley, Edwin Newman and Dr. Edward Teller.
The new slogan for the Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce,
"BAKERSFIELD - CALIFORNIA'S HEARTLAND" and their sponsorship of the
first annual Easter Parade this year are additional factors playing a
role in the reversal of Bakersfield's self-perception.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
All projects chosen by any community must first be narrowly focused, so
as not to dilute the effectiveness of community efforts. The Golden
Empire Gleaners' original thrust was simply to determine how to salvage
unused produce that was being left in the fields and use it to feed the
hungry. After finding success in this particular area, they broadened
their scope to include other hunger-related programs, such as Adopt-A-
Family, Senior Sack Program and Breakfast Club. Similarly, the Sup-
port-The-Library and Aunt Cherie's Home programs began with a specific,
focused goal and only expanded the scope of their services as those
initial goals were met. Focusing on too large an area tends to lead to
unspecific direction and floundering volunteers. As well, these endea-
vors encompass needs that are common to all sectors of the community,
which fosters a broad-based interest, resulting in vast community
support. The projects highlighted in this application, as well as
their results, are perfect examples of these characteristics, as
hunger, education and teen pregnancy are needs that cut across all
socio-economic groups.
An additional technique is to ensure project credibility early in the
planning stages of each project, through the recruitment of key commu-
nity leaders. Public confidence is necessary for successful community
projects, which is earned by involving respected leadership. The
active leaders identified in the response to application item six above
are an example of this principle at work, and were certainly important
to the success of these projects.
The ability to identify and recognize under-utilized available
resources is another extremely important key factor in meeting commu-
nity needs. For example, matching the previously wasted produce grown
in the Bakersfield area with the need to feed hungry people, or tapping
the available resources of senior citizens and youth groups to meet the
need of management expertise and physical labor. It is essential to
utilize every available resource in addressing the specific needs of
the community.
Communication is imperative to inform the public and solicit community
participation, as well as to unite businesses, the news media, volun-
teer groups, and government agencies in a common cause. Community in-
formation sharing with existing support networks is vital to achieving
civic education goals and receiving broad-based support from the commu-
nity. Ongoing communication through media and organizational updates
maintains critical life support between each project and the community.
Bakersfield has found that community participation and a willingness to
help one another tackle local problems is vital to the success of any
community effort.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
City of Tampa
Hillsborough County
Florida
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR.
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE-ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of acommunity: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Mayor-Council
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
U. of FLA
below 18 years
64,112
(1988 or most recent) 287,917 (4-1-89)
18-25
(18-24)
37,169
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or -),
26-35
(25-34)
49,015
(1970-1988)
+2.86%
36-50
(35-49)
12,411
POPULATION DENSITY 2,716 persons (land
51-65
(50-64)
40,424
(1988 or most recent) P/Sa. Mile Only)
Over 65
41,533
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
(1985
Census)
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY (1980 Census)
Black
23,9%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic (Spanish)
14.2%
Manufacturing
13.1%
Asian
1.0%
Trade (retail/wholesale)
25.9%
Other
2.5%
Agriculture
1.6%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME
$15,350
Services
14.8%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES (1980 Census)
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
(1980 Census)
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL
14.8%
(percentage pre-WWII)
17.3%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
5.7%
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS
6
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same-person designated as the program contact)
NAME Sandra W. Freedman
TITLE Mayor
ORGANIZATION City of Tampa
ADDRESS
1 City Hall Plaza, 8N
CITY/STATE/ZIP Tampa, FL 33602
TELEPHONE (813) 223-8251
SIGNED DATE 4/19/90
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME John Dunn
TITLE
Director of Communications
ORGANIZATION City of Tampa
ADDRESS
1 City Hall Plaza, 8N
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Tampa, FL 33602
TELEPHONE
(813) 223-8712
SIGNED
DATE 4/19/90
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
) choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz., to present the finalists' cases.
1.
Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
Tampa is the financial hub of Florida's west coast, consistently ranking high in
national business surveys as an excellent place to live or relocate a business.
But, the city has its challenges. Crime, sparked by increased drug activity, and
the deterioration of its older housing stock top the list of concerns facing
the 286,000 residents of Tampa. The arrival of crack cocaine in the mid-1980's
touched off a corresponding crime increase. In many inner city neighborhoods,
residents were afraid to venture from their homes after dark, as armed drug
dealers took over street corners: Mayor Sandy Freedman has added more than 200
police positions since 1986. Despite an arsenal of tools available to police,
the greatest weapon in the fight to regain. the neighborhoods overwhelmed by
drug dealers were the residents themselves. As explained in this application,
the QUAD program has eliminated 49 of these street corner "drug holes."
Housing and the general decline of city neighborhoods were documented in a 1987
housing survey that found 22 percent of the city's housing stock to be sub-
standard. The beleagured City Bureau of Minimum Standards, which at one time
used a proactive inspection system, became so flooded with complaints of declin-
ing neighborhood conditions that it became reactionary. Making additional
inspections merely clogged the code enforcement process, creating backlogs that
stretched for months, if not years. In March, 1987, the City of Tampa offered
residents the opportunity to do more than merely complain; it gave them the
opportunity to participate in restoring their neighborhoods through the Peer-to-
Peer program. A second opportunity for community involvement in neighborhood
improvement developed in 1989 through a, program to help paint and repair the
homes of low-income or disabled elderly. The program is called Paint Your Heart
Out, Tampa.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
QUICK UNIFORMED ATTACK ON DRUGS (QUAD) Police divided the city into 4 quadrants
and assigned a street-level unit of 40 police officers to work drug cases.
Dividing the city helped improve response time and established better relation-
ships with residents. Police carry beepers, and residents have those beeper
numbers. Each time a resident suspects drug activity in his/her neighborhood,
he/she contacts the police through beepers. Since its inception in February, 1989,
QUAD has totaled 2,436 arrests on 4,659 criminal charges. QUAD targeted 61
neighborhood "drug holes" and eliminated all but 11 in its first year. Mayor
Sandy Freedman provided the leadership by raising taxes to finance QUAD. QUAD
works because of community involvement; residents willing to risk reprisals by
cooperating with police. Residents cooperate because they see fast, concrete
results; their pride is restored because they can see how their proactive
involvement made a difference. (#9-Civic Index) The QUAD project relates to the
Civic Index by indicating the capacity for cooperation between public and private
sectors in Tampa (#8-Civic Index).
PEER-TO-PEER: City code enforcement inspectors in March 1987 began instructing
neighborhood groups to spot housing and environmental violations within their
neighborhoods. (#3-Civic Index) The city supplied post-cards that were then
sent to the violator by the civic associations. The city has worked with 16
groups, with peer-to-peer pressure forcing voluntary compliance in 35% to 65% of
the cases. Neighborhood groups have sent out 1,600 cards; 600 violators responded
to the peer pressure without city involvement; 500 complied once the city got
involved; and, the remaining 500 are awaiting further legal action. Peer-to-
Peer gives its citizens a leadership role in maintaining aesthetically pleasing
neighborhoods; and working closely with city inspectors gives citizens the proper
training to make code enforcement judgements, while also teaching residents about
community standards. (#l-Civic Index) The city does not advertise this service,
yet community word-of-mouth among civic groups has spread the news. The Peer-
to-Peer program fosters community pride and responsibility among neighborhood
residents. (#9-Civic Index)
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA: The goal is to use community volunteers to paint
the homes of low-income or disabled elderly. Last year, more than 1,500
volunteers painted 61 homes. On April 21, 1990, more than 3,500 volunteers
painted (expected to, as of deadline date) 102 homes. At the direction of the
Mayor, the City also planned to install smoke detectors and water conservation
kits in all the homes. (#3-Civic Index) The volunteers crossed all socio-
economic boundaries. Many well-to-do volunteers painted homes in areas of the
city they never knew existed. It gave them a: better understanding of inner city
conditions. It instilled such pride that every member of the committee volunteered
to do it again this year. Volunteers had to be turned away. (#l-Civic Index)
Many paint teams returned to their homes to give. further assistance: One team
paid for a new roof, another purchased a television set and eyeglasses for their
homeowner. Since this is a community-sponsored program now, it will survive
changes in the City administration. This project stimulates intergroup com-
munications and better relationships between various community populations. (#5-
Civic Index)
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
QUAD:
Open drug sales were contributing to a general decline of neighborhoods.
Tampa Police had employed a variety of tactics to battle drugs - reverse stings,
undercover operations, high visibility walking patrols - with marginal success.
Throughout 1987 and '88, Mayor Sandy Freedman was continuing a build-up of the
Police Department that would eventually swell by 200 authorized positions. From
those new positions, a special squad of 41 officers was assigned solely to street-
level drug sales. The city was divided into 4 quadrants based on identified
drug areas. Each officer was given a digital beeper to allow citizen contact.
Citizens were recruited through neighborhood watch and civic group meetings.
PEER-TO-PEER: In the spring of 1987, the City Standards and Enforcement Division
experienced a significant increase in citizen complaints, dealing with the
proliferation of blight in certain neighborhoods and an increasing demand for
code enforcement. A pilot program was devised and presented to a civic group
active in its demand for code enforcement. The City's role in the program was
to provide the civic group with property ownership information and to provide
periodic status reports on the cases. The City also designed and formatted
the cards used to express the groups's particular concern to the property owner.
The civic group would form a committee to identify potential violations, then
follow up the card notification. If a property was still in violation at the
time of the follow-up, the group would' furnish that information to the City for
an inspection. The City was to issue a violation notice within 72 hours.
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA: Mayor Sandy Freedman borrowed an idea from
Pittsburgh and tailored it to Tampa's needs. She instructed City staff to
organize it, setting a goal of 25 houses. But, she reached out to the community
to make it happen. A steering committee of 45 community volunteers was created
and it set a new goal of 60 homes. Subcommittees were established, each with a
specific task: Public relations, selecting houses, securing equipment, fund-
raising, etc. Homeowners selected color schemes arranged by an interior designer,
and then the houses were painted in a one day paint blitz using donated labor
and material. Prior to paint day, contractors did minor housing repairs without
charge, while professional power washers cleaned each house at no cost.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Quad Project:
- Tampa Police Department
40
Members of Police Quad
- Sulphur Springs Action
200
The League stimulated and sup-
League
ported creating the project.
- Citizens on Beeper System
100
They alert police to drug
activity
Peer To Peer:
- City of Tampa's Standards and
2
Developed program, organized
Enforcement Bureau
groups, provided postcard noti-
fications, and responded to
complaints.
- Sixteen Civic Organizations
1145
Carrying out programs. One Civic
(listing will be supplied,
group was in pilot program.
if needed)
Paint Your Heart Out:
- City of Tampa
300
Provided staff and produced
materials.
- Tampa Homeowners, an
2800
This is an umbrella group for 28
Association of Neighbor-
civic associations.
hoods (THAN)
- Greater Tampa Chamber of
10
Provide office space, stationery
Commerce
and staff support.
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
QUAD: After the initial meetings with the police, involved citizen groups spread
the QUAD message through word-of-mouth and newsletters. Sulphurs Spring Action League
used the QUAD contacts to stage a neighborhood clean-up, removing 88.5-tons of debris.
The group's message to drug deadlers was "we" are cleaning up our neighborhood of all
trash.
PEER TO PEER: The City initiated a pilot program with the Sulphur Springs Action
League, which was demanding code enforcement. Word-of-mouth between civic groups
spread publicity about the Peer TO Peer Program.
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA: The City, through efforts of Mayor Freedman, reached
out into the community to find co-chairmen for the event. The Mayor deliberately
sought to expand responsibility to include the entire community, since this was a
volunteer effort. To this extent, her effort was an unqualified success. Every
segment of the community, from the richest corporations to community groups in low-
income neighborhoods, are now active participations. The City now provides support
assistance. T.H.A.N. contacted a number of other civic groups not included within
its organization to solicit participation. The Paint Your Heart Out effort has been
flooded with volunteers, to the extent the committee for months has had to reject
further participation. The Chamber has reached out to its membership for corporate
teams and financial support.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
6. For each of the three efforts, identify three Individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
QUAD:
John Dunn
1 City Hall Plaza, 8N/223-8712
Director of Communications
(will answer questions, as citizens prefer anonymity)
Maj.
A. B. Hatcher 1710 Tampa Street/932-1555
Major, Tactical Division
PEER TO PEER:
Joe Huskey, Manager 306 E. Jackson Street, 3N/223-8389 Standards & Enforcement
Howard Moor, President (813) 237-1608
Old Seminole Hts. Preserv. Ctm.
Kathryn Malour, President
(813)
237-8314
S.E. Seminole Clean-up League
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA:
Sandra W. Freedman,
306 E. Jackson, 8N/223-8251
Mayor of Tampa
Douglas Lobel
3000 E. Fletcher/972-1398
Co-Chairman, Paint Your Heart
Out
Tom Willet, Willet, Inc. 5301 Cypress #309/289-5402 Co-Chairman, Paint Your Heart
Out
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
QUAD:
Greatest obstacle was overcoming the residnets fear of reprisals from drug
dealers.
PEER TO PEER:
The primary obstacles arose from hardcore violators who harassed and threatened
civic group leaders when confronted with code violations.
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA:
The obstacles had to do mainly with the logistics of screening houses and
coordinating thousands of volunteers. The primary non-logistical obstacle
was securing the required paint, brushes, ladders and other materials. The
paint industry was the primary segment of the community targeted.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
QUAD has taken great effort to avoid direct interaction with residents at their
homes. In addition, QUAD was not released to the media for months after its
inception until anonymity could be guaranteed.
PEER TO PEER Perservance and committment by civic association leaders overcame the
bully tactics of certain individuals. Also, a strategy was devised utilizing
common sense, and bringing in both a code enforcement officer and a police officer
to deal in concert with especially hardcore individuals.
PAINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA Members of the paint industry were added to the
steering committee. Special recognition in the form of advertisements was
afforded to those businesses that contributed. And members of the steering
committee met, lobbied, dined, and cajoled the CEO's of the industry for
contributions.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Volunteerism is Alive and Well in Tampa:
Volunteerism grew in Tampa during the eighties in inverse proportion to the
recession of federal dollars for housing and social services. All of these projects
manifest that volunteerism in the most basic of fashions, from the unknown volun-
teers who courageously notify the police about drug dealers in their neighborhoods,
and the volunteers who take on the unpleasant task of notifying the Bureau of
Standards and Enforcement about their neighbors' code violations, to the great
numbers of volunteers who turn out to paint the houses of the elderly. Although
the thirty-six small foundations in Tampa do not generally work with each other or
the government, the non-profit organizations do. The Volunteer Center of Hills-
borough County, Inc., founded in 1978, filters 1500 volunteers annually through its
reference service to social service and civic agencies. Furthermore, corporate
giving has helped to fill the gap in many community projects such as Paint Your
Heart Out, where the supplies were donated by the business community. Corporate
giving is at its best during the United Way fund raising drive; it involves not
only the top governmental level of City administrators, but the top corporate
leaders in Tampa, including the Chamber of Commerce.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Intercommunity Cooperation Needs Work in the Tampa Area:
Hillsborough County in which Tampa is located has two other municipalities, and
Pinellas County, the county proximate to the City of Tampa across Tampa Bay, has
twenty-four municipalities. The area is collectively known as the Tampa Bay Area.
It is in this region, and in conjunction with other surrounding counties that
cooperation between neighboring local governments is anticipated. Service delivery
in the Tampa Bay area is not coordinated, though regional rail connections will
eventually be needed. The issue of water resources divides the thirsty Tampa Bay
Area shelf counties from their adjacent and water-rich neighbors, especially
Pasco County. The West Coast Regional Water Supply Authority was created in 1974
to supply water to the three counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco and has
been a key to alleviating the tension raised by water wars.
Resolution of some regional planning issues, such as developments of regional
interest (large developments), are achieved by a council of elected officials
called the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. More intercommunity cooperation
is demanded by the State in the recently-developed local government comprehensive
plans. The State of Florida mandated that these local plans contain an element
called the Intergovernmental Coordination Element in which a process for local
conflict resolution would be presented. It is hoped that this process will be used
in any future interlocal disagreements.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
QUAD: Sucess was achieved through enhanced police-citizen contact. In
addition to having access to police beeper numbers, citizens were encouraged
to ride with police to witness the fruit of their involvement. Public confidence
in QUAD has increased dramatically, fostered by the ability to see concrete
results from citizen involvement.
PEER TO PEER: This is a very simple program utilizing minimal techniques. The
key is bringing about "peer" pressure through the responsible neighborhood asso-
ciation communicating in writing to the alledged City code violator in a. specific
neighborhood that they have discovered a violation which is offensive to the
group. Neighborhood integrity is enhanced when the pressure brought to bear re-
sults in code compliance. The City's obligation is to follow-up with enforcement
action against those who fail to respond to the community group. This adds credi-
bility and support to the neighborhood group and communicates the importance of
the program to the residents of the neighborhood, one important technique of the
program allowed the neighborhood contact person to have direct access to the en-
forcement supervisor's office. This resulted in the communication of the City
actions and its results back to the neighborhood, giving them an up-to-date
status on the enforcement actions by the City. (See flow chart below).
NORMAL CODE ENFORCEMENT COMPLAINT FLOW
PEER TO PEER FLOW
Citizen Complaint
Civic Association Contact Person
Code Enforcement Dispatch Center
Code Enforcement Supervisor
Entered Into Complaint System
Civic Association Officer Action
Enforcement Officer Works,
Follow-up Report to the Association
first come, first served
No special report generated; no
priority given
POINT YOUR HEART OUT, TAMPA: The key component to Paint Your Heart Out, Tampa is
citizen participation. Other communities have made Paint Your Heart Out a govern-
ment-sponsored event, but the result has been. a much smaller scale of project.
Finding the key community leaders to serve on the steering committee is also critical
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
Abilene
Taylor
Texas
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of a community: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
(1989 Survey of Buying Power)
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Home Rule
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
below 18 years not available
(1988 or most recent) 108,801
18-25
14.6%
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
26-35
17.0%
(1970-1988) + 17.8%
36-50
19.0%
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65
23.7%
(1988 or most recent) 108,296-108.3sq.mi.
Over 65
not available
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY SMSA (1989)
Black
6.75%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic 12.49%
Manufacturing
10.2%
Asian
not available
Trade (retail/wholesale)
28.1%
Other
1.39%
* Agriculture
1.4%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME $19,148.00
Services
26.7%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK before 1939-14.1% see
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL 8.6%
(percentage pre-WWII) 1940-1959 45.5% **below
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 5.1%
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS over 200
** 1960-1969 20.8%, 1970-1980 19.6% *1980 Census
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME Mr. Bill Wright
TITLE Chairman
ORGANIZATION Abilene Chamber of Commerce
ADDRESS P. O. Box 2281
CITY/STATE/ZIP Abilene, TX 79604
TELEPHONE 915/676-7777
SIGNED Bueling
DATE April 18, 1990
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME Mr. Charlie Dromgoole
TITLE President
ORGANIZATION Abilene Chamber of Commerce
ADDRESS P. O. Box 2281
CITY/STATE/ZIP Abilene, TX 79604
TELEPHONE 915/677-7241
SIGNED
DATE April 18, 1990
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz, to present the finalists' cases.
1. Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
The Abilene story is about survival through unity.
It is about people recognizing that only by listening to each other, working with each other and helping each other
can a community hope to overcome problems that demoralize it and threaten its future.
Abilene was faced with this challenge in the mid-1980's. The two major pillars of our economy are oil and
agriculture. When they collapsed, the economic distress not only created an environment of layoffs and foreclosures, but it
threatened to tum citizens against each other. Distrust and uncertainty were gnawing at the fabric of our community.
Oil prices went into a tailspin. No profit could be made from cotton. Unemployment soared to 11.5 percent. Retail
sales fell 15 percent. Bankruptcies reached economic proportions, and the banking community itself was in turmoil. A
survey of public attitudes showed that people feared city officials had lost the ability to lead. They feared the best and
brightest minds were leaving.
But this is not a story of high-flying oilmen who suddenly came crashing down to earth. The people most hurt by
the economic crash were blue collar workers, black and Hispanic citizens, young people who wanted to improve their skills so
they could find good jobs.
Under almost any circumstance, these people will feel powerless and cut off from a community, unable to make their
voices heard. That the community's leadership seemed to be fractured could only make it worse.
In early 1989, Abilene received another blow: Medicare cuts forced the closing of the Hendrick Medical Center's
family practice residency program, a primary source of medical care for the working poor. Since Abilene is not part of a
hospital tax district, there was little doubt this could turn into a real crisis for a large number of low-income Abilenians.
Abilene attacked this problem in several ways, three of which are described in detail elsewhere in this entry:
We formed an organization, called ACT-NOW! (for Abilenians Choosing Tomorrow - NOW!), to provide
grassroots planning. The task force included 200 people, but many more were involved through public forums.
Against long odds, we entered the selection process for one of six maximum security prisons. More than 350
people worked on a proposal and on lobbying state prison officials. The prison would bring 800 850 jobs to our
community.
Our health community came together quickly with city leaders, volunteers and the Presbyterian Medical Care
Mission to ensure that the health care needs of the poor would be met.
These projects illustrate how Abilene citizens are committed to helping themselves ensure this community's survival
and growth. So is the fact that in 1989, Abilene became the first Texas city to pass a half-cent sales tax increase to pay for
industrial development - a noteworthy achievement in trying economic times and a significant factor in winning the prison.
Not one of these projects was accomplished simply by a handful of leaders pulling strings. They were accomplished
the All-American way, through people recognizing that they do and must have a voice and must work with others to make
their community a better place for all its citizens. 11
The economic problems have not disappeared. But Abilene is far better equipped to handle them, to move beyond
them. And there is only one reason for that we learned to work together.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
Medical Care:
The Presbyterian Medical Care Mission provides health care to citizens who do not have the money or insurance to
pay for their own. An average of 2,000 people pass through its doors a month, people of every age and religion. It is
particularly important to our black and Hispanic citizens. At the mission these people are cared for by two physicians, any of
55-60 volunteers, and one physician's assistant. Paying on a sliding scale according to income, they have access to a network
of specialists in Abilene who have agreed to see any patients referred from the Mission on the same sliding scale fee basis. In
addition, Hendrick Medical Center and Humana Hospital, accepts all referrals for in patient and out patient services from the
Presbyterian Medical Care Mission.
This project relied heavily on volunteerism and philanthropy, community leadership, government involvement and
intergroup relations. It also is an example of the community vision and pride Abilene feels in its high degree of support for
non-profit efforts.
ACT-NOW!
Community Involvement - The ACT-NOW! (Abilene Choosing Tomorrow - Now!), a community goal setting
process, involved 350 people directly and many more were invited to participate through forums. Three local governments,
the City of Abilene, Taylor County, and Abilene Independent School District (AISD) demonstrated GOVERNMENT
PERFORMANCE in an INTER-COMMUNITY partnership for ACT-NOW! with the private sector - the Abilene Chamber
of Commerce, the nonprofit sectors - the Community Foundation, Dodge Jones Foundation, and three universities.
CITIZEN PARTICIPATION included 144 participants who identified issues, 20 leaders who spearheaded design of
the survey of local attitudes and the planning retreat, responses of 338 citizens to the survey, almost 100 community leaders
participating in the 2 day planning retreat, 200 citizens voicing concerns at the community forum, and 125 citizens serving
on the four issue Task Forces.
There was representation from all demographic and ethnic groups including the Black Chamber of Commerce, the
NAACP, and the Hispanic community. The CAPACITY FOR CONSENSUS AND COOPERATION was demonstrated by
the willingness of leaders to share power, the openness of the process, and the fact that not one citizen who expressed interest
in participating was turned down. Except for the project staff, VOLUNTEERISM was the role of every one who participated
in the process, giving enormous commitments of time, energy, professional expertise, and research. PHILANTHROPY was
provided by the Community and Dodge Jones Foundations, with financial and in-kind expertise.
Prison Project:
In order to create jobs and economic activity, community leaders attracted a 2,250-bed maximum security prison.
They did so by overcoming huge odds, including concerns about how the prison would affect the city's image and security, a
perceived lack of state wide political clout and shortage of funds for industrial development.
Eventually, support for the prison project was strong and widespread. Voters overwhelmingly approved a half-cent
sales tax for economic development, becoming the first city in Texas to do so.
A broad cross-section of the community was represented on the prison task force, and hundreds of people participated
in the writing of a proposal, in the lobbying effort and in showing support for the task force's final presentation to the state
prison selection board.
Judged by the Civic Index, this project relied heavily on Citizen Participation and Cooperation and Consensus
Building. These elements were the result of strong Community Leadership, which emphasized Community Information
Sharing and Intergroup Relations.
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
Medical Care: Soaring medical costs in a struggling economy intensified the need for medical care for the "working
poor," those who do not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, and those with no jobs at all.
In 1988, for financial reasons, the Family Practice Residency Program and the clinic associated with the program were
scheduled for closing. It was determined a clinic serving that same population was needed to take the place of the Family
Practice Program. As a part of that process, hospital and community leaders determined that a significant upgrading of the
Presbyterian Mission was the best solution to this serious problem. The mission received a giant boost of volunteer and
financial support so this group of Abilene citizens would receive needed healthcare.
The Presbyterian Medical Care Mission was conceived as a church ministry for the people in Abilene who could not afford
health care. The community got squarely behind the expanded development of the service with city, county and private
funds; volunteer support and a new facility.
It was certain Abilenians were not going to let fellow citizens go without medical care in such tough economic times.
Organizers were the home church of the mission joined by other churches and denominations, city and county government
officials, two hospitals, donors and volunteers from all sectors.
The most striking thing about this effort was the quick and quiet way it was carried out. Everyone involved immediately
recognized that it was unacceptable for the working poor -- among the most powerless members of any community -- to go
without health care, or even to be placed in the position of wondering how they would receive proper medical treatment.
This was an instance where the government, the churches, the doctors and health administrators saw a problem and fixed it.
An editorial in the newspaper stressed the importance of finding a solution, but a solution was well in the works even then.
Health care was provided before an impending crisis was ever allowed to take shape.
ACT-NOW! ACT-NOW! represents the culmination of several years of community-building and capacity building as a
response to a prolonged period of economic devastation and reduction of government budgets. Times began to improve and
stabilize in 1988 for Abilene. City Manager Jim C. Blagg originally had the idea after visiting with Council members Gary
McCaleb and Betty Ray, who both said they saw a need for the city to start looking 3 - 5 years down the road. The idea was
taken to the Mayor, Abilene Chamber of Commerce, A.I.S.D. school district trustees and a group of 20 community leaders,
who were asked, "This is what the community needs to do - do you agree or not?" This group agreed and organized the initial
process to be known as Abilene Choosing Tomorrow - NOW! (ACT-NOW!)
This was more than a strategic planning process, however. It was also an effort to give voice to those who felt they had
none. These were the same people who had been hurt so by the collapsed economy.
Prison Project: First, a survey of public attitudes conducted by the Abilene Chamber of Commerce and the Abilene
Reporter-News showed that the clear top concern of our community was lack of solid, dependable jobs with decent wages.
At about the same time, the Texas Legislature was searching for locations for six new prisons, part of Governor Bill
Clements' effort to ease prison overcrowding and reduce the chance that dangerous criminals would be placed back on the
street.
In May 1989, a group of community leaders sat down and began to talk seriously about Abilene's chances for becoming
one of the sites. The group decided that a maximum security prison would win local support and that the city could put
together a strong proposal.
As much as an effort to gain 800 jobs and a $1.4 million monthly payroll to Abilene, the prison project became a test of
local resolve and local confidence. We were starting late and Abilene had a reputation for lacking influence in state
government. But we thought it could be done.
A task force of 100 members from throughout the community was formed. There was a strong effort to involve every
sector of Abilene -- public and private, the black and Hispanic leadership, churches, the school board, college educators and
law enforcement personnel. All joined hands in putting together a $4.5 million proposal. The prison was to be placed on
city-owned land north of town in Jones County.
A significant boost to our efforts came in July and early August. Abilene took advantage of a new state law allowing
cities to increase the sales tax a half-cent to pay for industrial development. That would allow the burden of economic
development to be shared more evenly by everyone who uses Abilene as a retail center. The increase was explained carefully
and voters passed it by a 63-percent to 37-percent margin. Abilene was the first Texas city to take advantage of this
important tool.
The revenue it brought helped immensely, but so did the message it conveyed -- that citizens of Abilene are working
together and are willing to sacrifice and pay their own way toward a better future.
Scores of Abilene residents then joined in the most intensive promotional effort the city had attempted in recent memory,
if ever. Several people phoned the governor's office repeatedly to discuss the Abilene proposal. Numerous citizens, including
Bill Wright, chairman of the Abilene Chamber of Commerce and Andrew Penns, president of the local NAACP chapter, met
frequently with individual members of the state's prison selection task force.
Finally, more than 200 residents, again from every walk of life, traveled to Austin for the city's presentation to the task
force. Abilene was selected and our proposal was judged one of the best.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Medical Care:
Religious Organizations
6,000
$40,000
County Commissioners
5
$50,000
City Council, Manager, Mayor
15-20
Electric, Utility
Hendrick Medical Center
N/A
$100,000; inpatient & outpatient services provided
Humana Hospital
N/A
Building
Local Foundation
N/A
$50,000
County Medical Society
Physician Referral
Private businesses & individuals
N/A
Furnishings
ACT-NOW!
ACT-NOW! Organization
144
Overall leadership, participation in the issue identification,analysis,
goalsetting, and action plan development
Abilene Chamber of Commerce
1,150
Financial sponsorship
City Council and City Organ.
20
Financial sponsorship
Abilene Independent School Dist.
10
Financial sponsorship
County Commissioners Court
5
Hardin Simmons University
5
Participation in process;leadership of President as Vice-Chair of ACT-NOW!
McMurry University
5
Participation in process
Abilene Christian University
5
Participation in process
Community Foundation
3
Leadership of staff & volunteers; financial resources.
Dodge Jones Foundation
2
Financial resources, community direction and in-kind expertise in fundraising.
PRISON PROJECT:
Prison task force
100
site selection, writing of proposal, oversight of negotiations and lobbying
Abilene Chamber of Commerce
1,150
Overall leadership, active participation in coming up with the proposals,
lobbying assistance
City of Abilene
20
County Commissioners Court
5
Abilene Chapter NAACP
25
assistance in lobbying, etc.
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
25
assistance in lobbying
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
Medical Care: These groups identified a population of 15,000 working poor who needed of on going medical care and
provided it for them. The 15,000 were identified by the 1980 Census using 100% Federal Poverty Guidelines, excluding
persons eligible for Medicare or Medicaid. The Family Practice Residency files were also turned over to the Presbyterian
Mission. These files contained 12,000 names. The avenues used to inform these people about the program were the news
media, referrals from the Trauma Centers at both hospitals, churches, Call for Help, and various other social agencies.
ACT-NOW! ACT-NOW! leaders made a conscious, determined effort to involve citizens, and in particularly, the minority
community, by extending an invitation to every major community and special interest group in the city. Members of the
Human Relations Committee, a group formed by the city to give the minority community greater voice, were invited to serve
as were representatives from the Black and Hispanic Chambers of Commerce.
A press conference was held to alert the public that the process had begun. An invitation was issued for public
participation. No one who volunteered to serve was turned down. Meetings were open to the public with intense efforts to
notify the media. Voluminous correspondence was issued to all participants throughout the process to keep everyone
informed.
A community forum was the high point of citizen participation with almost 200 citizens in attendance. One-on-one
dialogue between citizens and ACT-NOW! leaders was the order of the evening. A recurring comment made was, "We need
more town meetings like this to find out what's going on!".
Prison Project: A community forum was held to give the opportunity to learn specific information about the Prison
project. All Prison Task Force meetings were open to the public and received extensive coverage by all of the media. Special
television documentaries on the project were produced by local TV stations and continuous coverage of the progress of the
project and its impact on the community was provided by the newspaper, all 3 TV stations and numerous radio stations.
Citizens were involved by writing letters and making personal contacts to the Prison Board members and state officials. Over
200 people attended the final hearing in Austin when the selection was announced. With over 300 people involved in the
project, it was definitely a successful grassroots effort.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
Medical Care:
Michael Waters
Hendrick Medical Center (private) 1242 N. 19th (01) 670-2000
President
Neil Fry (public)
300 Oak (02)
674-1235
County Commissioner
Fred White
Medical Care Mission organizer (nonprofit) 302 Medical Dr. (01) 672-5601
M.D.
ACT-NOW!
Frank Puckett
Abilene Reporter News (private)
P. O. Box 30 (04)
673-4271
President
Dr. Jesse C. Fletcher
Hardin Simmons University (nonprofit)
670-1000
President
Jim Blagg
City of Abilene (public) P. O. Box 60 (04)
676-6206
City Manager
Prison Project:
Gary Vest
Abilene Industrial Foundation (nonprofit) P.O. Box 2281 (04) 677-7241
President
Michael Waters
Hendrick Medical Center (private) 1242 N. 19th (01) 670-2000
President
Mike Morrison
Community & Economic Development, City of Abilene (public) 676-6390
Director
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
Medical Care:
The speed with which the project had to be implemented to assure ongoing medical care of the impoverished posed a
significant challenge. In the span of only a few months, the Medical Care Mission had to gain the needed financial support,
new headquarters and new staff physicians.
ACT-NOW!
The issue of a publicly supported university drew immediate attention and interest as concerns were voiced that the
issue would be stifled and not addressed. There were charges that the media would not give it full attention due to historical
strong support for the universities, and a law which in effect protected the interests of the three private universities.
Another obstacle was that there was a sense that the process was going nowhere, especially right after the planning
retreat.
Prison Project:
Some people still felt that prisons were a negative blemish on a community. A proposal for a small, minimum
security pre-release center had met with opposition.
Opposition also came from rural residents in southern Jones County, in the vicinity of the prison site. They feared
for their safety. They worried that their property would lose value. And they harbored bad memories of past conflicts with
Abilene City Hall dating back to the construction of Abilene's wastewater treatment plant.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
Medical Care: Swift communication between key players including hospital, city, county, and medical mission officials,
at many well-attended meetings moved the project along in the needed time frame. Collecting the right people with the
money and power to move rapidly was essential.
ACT-NOW! The media, especially the print media, to its credit, provided an open forum for the debate on the issue of
affordable public education by carrying guest editorials, letters to the editor, and debates on the pros and cons. Community
leaders, in particular the Chamber of Commerce Education committee, paved the way for serious consideration of the issue by
meeting with the three universities to develop a response to the community's concerns.
After the ACT-NOW! structure was unveiled, as people began to receive correspondence, as meetings began to be
held, people's faith in its potential increased.
Prison Project: A public hearing was conducted to gauge public sentiment. Those citizens who favored the prison
proposal, including a number of Abilenians who were out of work, said the need for good jobs outweighed traditional
opposition to prisons. Supporters stressed that crime was on the increase precisely because Texas did not have enough prison
space.
Abilene officials met with Jones County officials to discuss differences and assure those concerned that costs would
be shared. There were numerous one-on-one meetings between task force members and residents and county officials to
discuss how a prison would benefit the entire region, not just the city of Abilene.
At the hearing before the state's prison selection, one woman from Jones County spoke in opposition to the prison
location. But even in her opposition, she made it clear that Abilene officials had made an effort to address concerns.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
The strongest component of the Civic Index is CAPACITY FOR COOPERATION AND CONSENSUS
BUILDING.
It's a component that Abilene has needed to work on, but the success of the prison project, the sales tax for
economic development, the medical care mission and the ACT-NOW! planning process show that considerable progress has
been made. Without cooperation and consensus building, all these projects would have failed.
In all of these cases, community leaders recognized problems and took a pro-active approaching to solving them.
The prison project was a goal that all agreed was a longshot, but by building a consensus leaders were able to call on all
segments of the community for intensive help.
The sales tax was another longshot, but because the public was educated on a complex issue, Abilene was able to
find much-needed money at the time when money was tight and taxes, as always, are treated like the plague.
With the medical care mission and the ACT-NOW! process, Abilene was able to call on its long tradition of
volunteerism. All segments recognized the need and quickly responded, without bickering.
When conflicts arose, we had two mechanisms for dealing with them -- public meetings and the media. Both were
critical in the success of ACT-NOW! and the prison project; they allowed potential opponents to state alternative views and
they provided a way for people to essentially carry out a public debate. Thanks to the debate, resolutions could be reached.
Abilene could not always count capacity for cooperation and consensus building as a strong point, but it has seen
how vital that element is when dealing with problems. For more than 10 years, Abilene and minority leaders have been
engaged in a court battle over an election system. But in the past year, there has been renewed interest in settling this
dispute. That interest is a direct result of the ACT-NOW! process.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
The weakest civic index component is in Intergroup Relations. In the fall of 1988, the City organization found itself under
attack by minority groups which included the NAACP and LULAC. Concerns expressed by these groups included under-
representation of minorities in city government, on city boards and commissions, perceptions of inadequate participation in
city contracts and distribution of city funds for infrastructure, services, and overall lack of involvement and input in the city's
decision making processes.
The City Council responded with the creation and appointment of a Human Relations Committee (HRC) charged to
advise and ensure equal enjoyment and access to community benefits. The HRC, a fifteen member committee, has been the
most visible and proactive force in advocating access to City Hall.
There are other examples of how Abilene has sought to address this problem:
The ACT-NOW! process, 6.4
percent of the members were Hispanic and 11 percent were black.
For the period form September 1988, when the Human
Relations Committee was created, to March 1990, minority representation on city boards and commissions increased 7
percent -- 3 percent for blacks and 4 percent for Hispanics. Representation by women increased 2 percent.
The Abilene
Chamber of Commerce revised its bylaws in October 1988 to add the presidents of the Black and Hispanic Chambers of
Commerce as ex-officio members of the Board of Directors of the Chamber.
The Abilene Committee for the Humanities
sponsored a contemporary issue series, whose speakers included Texas State Representative Wilhelmina Delco, a black
legislator who is chairman of the House Higher Education Committee, and Frank Gonzales, an Hispanic leader associated
with the Intercultural Development Research Association. These presentations were valuable in further bringing the
community together and were attended by record crowds of community leaders from all ethnic groups.
Individual
community leaders also have sought greater dialogue with the minority community. Bill Wright, current chairman of the
Abilene Chamber, started a monthly informal breakfast meeting in 1988, inviting various citizens from all segments of the
community. It has become a popular and valuable way of sharing information and needs.
One valuable outcome was the information shared during the prison process. The need for lobbying of state prison
officials was stressed a the breakfast meetings and the initiative and perseverance of Andrew Penns, President of the NAACP,
was a key factor in the selection of Abilene.
The success of the Committee's efforts has been due to three key areas of support - dedication and commitment of
members themselves, full support and resources by the City Council, and the support and enthusiasm of the community to
confront these problems.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
Medical Care:
Identify those needing help and determine their level of need. Then call to a common table all those who hold the
power and responsibility to solve the problem and take care of the need. Finally, in the spirit of generosity and caring, share
the wealth.
ACT-NOW!
In any planning effort, use the expertise you have rather than outside consultants to maximize limited resources and
increase ownership of the final products/outcomes.
Increase the opportunity for public participation with saturation of media coverage for those events where
participation is highly desirable.
Be overly zealous in including all segments of the community.
Do not go into the process if you do no really want to know what direction the community would like to go or if
conditions are such that you will not be able to effect change due to crisis or absence of dollars.
Prison Project:
There can never be enough public input. While there comes a time when a decision ultimately must be made, the
public must feel involved in that process throughout.
Without involving all sectors of the community, the prison project would have died. Instead of leaving the effort to
a task force, everyone must feel included. They must feel free to air disagreements.
In other words, cities must understand that people are part of the solution, not part of a problem to be overcome.
Cities should encourage the media to air all points of view. One of the most significant breakthroughs of the ACT-
NOW! project was the decision to seek a more affordable type of public higher education. But because of a belief that
Abilene's existing private colleges exercise strong influence over the decision-making in Abilene, many people believed this
could never happen.
Early in the ACT-NOW! process, one advocate of public higher education submitted a guest column on the subject
to the newspaper, expecting it to be rejected. It was published, and while there was discomfort (to say the least) at first, a
significant public debate on the topic was conducted.
Most important, Abilene discovered that most people, given an opportunity to participate, will respond with
enthusiasm and dedication. If people believe they are powerless, they will act as if they are powerless. Involve them. Give
them a task to perform and involve enough people so that if one person falters, another will step in to fill the need.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate
City of Hamlet
Richmond
North Carolina
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of acommunity: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Council-Manager
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
JLATION
below 18 years
1,239
(1988 or most recent)
6,640
18-25
493
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
26-35
669
(1970-1988)
+29
36-50
916
POPULATION DENSITY
(Richmond County)
51-65
1,434
(1988 or most recent)
96.1
Over 65
1,361
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY
Black
24
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic
N/A
Manufacturing
26%
Asian
N/A
Trade (retail/wholesale)
23%
Other (Indian)
1
Agriculture
1%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME
16,073
Services
50%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL
22%
(percentage pre-WWII)
35%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
4.3%
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS
35
(1980 Census is source)
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Glenn Sumpter
TITLE
Editor, Richmond County Daily Journal
ORGANIZATION
Citizen
ADDRESS
542 Main Street
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Hamlet, North Carolina 28345
FPHONE
919/582-2950 (h) 919/997-3111 (b)
SO
ED
Thenn Sumpter
DATE April 17, 1990
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME
Ron Niland
TITLE
City Manager
ORGANIZATION
City of Hamlet
ADDRESS
Post Office Box 1229
CITY/STATE/ZIP
Hamlet, North Carolina 28345
TELEPHONE
919/582-2651
SIGNED
DATE April 17, 1990
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to
se the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Pla
X, Ariz., to present the finalists' cases.
1. Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
Hamlet is a small town (approximately 6,000 population) in a small, predominantly
rural county (approximately 45,000 population). The county, like many small counties
that are not located along an interstate highway, has had a relatively stagnant
economy for the last decade.
The problems are somewhat more severe for Hamlet because it has been, since
its founding a little over 100 years ago, a railroad town. In the days when railroad
passenger service was at its peak, Hamlet was one of the main stops along the
New York-Florida route. The decline in passenger service led to a slow decline
in the city's downtown.
Economic problems have become more severe in the last decade as railroad con-
solidation had caused a steady decline in employment at the large CSX switchyard
just outside the city limits. The yard has long been the town's largest employer.
CSX has closed many of the shops at the switchyard, transferring workers to other
areas. This has led to an exodus of young people from the town, leaving a pre-
dominantly older population, many of them retired.
Hamlet's problems are complicated by the fact that it is Richmond County's
"second city". Rockingham, the county seat, is only five miles away. Rockingham
has a larger population (approximately 9,000) and a stronger industrial base.
In the 1970's when shopping centers began developing, Richmond County's shopping
centers located in Rockingham. The shopping centers drew merchants from both
downtowns, but the location of various governmental offices in the county seat
has bolstered the business climate in Rockingham's downtown.
Because Richmond County is a small county, there has been a movement over
last several years to consolidate various services in order to maximize the
County's potential. The county's three school systems were consolidated approxi-
mately 20 years ago. This led to the consolidation of the county's four high
schools into one county-wide high school. This improved the education offerings
available to students, but Hamlet lost some of its identity when Hamlet High School
closed.
In a similar development, the struggling chambers of commerce in the two cities
were consolidated into a county-wide chamber of commerce that is more economically
viable, but again this somewhat diminished Hamlet's image.
Hamlet has responded to these developments in various ways. A group of business-
men formed a non-profit corporation to develop a small industrial park south of
the city and were successful in attracting five industries there. The park also
provided land for a nursing home, which is related to one of our three projects.
Hamlet has also developed its traditional image as a railroad town by the
development of Hamlet National Railroad Museum. The museum, operated by a non-profit
corporation created by local citizens, is housed in Hamlet's railroad depot building,
which is on the National Historic Register. An impressive amount of historic
railroad artifacts are housed in the museum, which is open on weekends. The museum
is staffed by volunteers, many of whom are retired railroaders.
The Hamlet American Legion has worked with the city government to upgrade
the city's recreational facilities, and various volunteer groups enable Hamlet
to have one of the most extensive youth baseball programs in the state.
The city's senior citizens operate an extremely active program at the local
senior center, including a popular senior citizens' band.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
PRESERVING HAMLET HOSPITAL- In 1986, Hamlet found itself faced with a problem
that has plagued many small towns. Hamlet Hospital had a declining census, suffered
'S in Medicare payments and was on the verge of closing. In Hamlet Hospital's
se, management problems with Sun Health, the firm hired to manage the hospital,
had complicated the problems. The hospital's non-profit board of directors began
to take a more active role in managing the hospital and also began looking for
a firm to lease and operate the hospital.
Auxiliary members held bake sales and auctions to help keep the hospital doors
open. When cutbacks in hospital costs forced discontinuing emergency room service,
the medical staff, volunteered to staff the emergency room.
When HMA of Naples, Fla., expressed an interest in leasing and operating the
hospital, the terms of the lease became a problem. The hospital property had
been deeded to the county in 1977 under the terms of a $1.2 million bond issue
to upgrade the facility. The hospital was required to make annual bond payments
and HMA determined that approximately $85,000 required in annual bond payments
made the hospital economically unfeasible to operate.
Hospital supporters turned to the general public and large crowds appeared
at public hearings urging the County Commissioners to absorb part of the bond
payment to keep the hospital open. Thousands of Richmond Countians signed petitions
urging the same thing. Because of the tremendous show of support for the hospital
from the people in Hamlet, the city government agreed to pay $39,000 a year on
the bond payment, with HMA paying the remainder. This lease was approved by the
county, and the hospital is operating successfully.
The hospital and the public support for it were a key factor in Britthaven's
subsequent decision to open a 65-bed skilled care nursing home in Hamlet. This
in turn led to a dialysis center being established in Hamlet.
The result is that Hamlet, which was in danger of losing its hospital and
professional medical community, has instead, an expanding array of medical
vices.
EXPANDING AND MODERNIZING HAMLET LIBRARY- The Hamlet Library, built in 1938
by the WPA, was packed to capacity. The shelf space was used up; the facility
had no meeting rooms; and the children's department was crowded into a basement
area and sometimes had to be closed for adult programs. State funds totaling
$196,000 were available for expansion. The city promised $125,000 and the county
$15,000, but that still left the project short of the amount needed to modernize
and double the capacity of the library. The project required an additional $167,000.
The Friends of the Library, a group of volunteers, undertook to raise that
amount, beginning their drive in 1986. $167,000 is a tremendous amount of money
to raise in a small city with a low per-capita income and a high percentage of
retired people. It took a lot of bake, quilt and book sales as well as appeals
to businesses and civic clubs, but the money was raised and the library is now
one of the city's showplaces.
THE GROWTH OF THE SEABOARD FESTIVAL- The Seaboard Festival, an arts and crafts
festival in downtown Hamlet, was begun in October, 1982, by Richmond Community
College in connection with a National Humanities Grant to study the city's rail-
roading history. It was kept going on a small scale by the County Arts Council.
A board of directors was formed to promote the festival in 1985 and the festival
drew 80 exhibitors in 1986. By 1989, that grew to 110 exhibitors. In addition,
the 1989 festival featured shows in the Old Hamlet Theatre which had long sat
unused in the downtown, and a "Meet Me At The Depot" reunion that drew many former
residents back to town. The reunion will be continued in 1990 as will the shows
in the old theatre, and shows are now planned in that theatre at other times of
year. The Railroad Museum is an integral part of the Seaboard Festival and
benefitted from the exposure. The festival does much to boost Hamlet's image
as a historic railroad town.
We believe these three projects touch on every facet of the community index.
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
The three projects were all inspired by a desire to preserve and promote
.e best things about Hamlet, but were sparked by different specific problems
and organized in different ways.
The prospect of the hospital closing was a serious health care problem, particu-
larly because many Hamlet citizens are elderly. The prospect also had an economic
impact. Had the hospital closed, many of the town's doctors would probably have
moved their offices to Rockingham to be closer to the county's other hospital.
In addition, the hospital was, and is, one of the largest employers inside the
city limits.
The initial organization of the drive to save the hospital centered around
the board of directors of the non-profit institution but spread quickly to involve
the medical staff, other employees and hospital auxiliary. These core groups
moved out to contact civic clubs and other community groups and to circulate
petitions.
The Hamlet Ministerial Association, composed of ministers from the city's
black and white churches, became deeply involved in the effort to save the hospital
and was a vital element in its success. The eloquence of individual citizens
in public hearings before the County Commission helped tell the story and build
support. In a town that doesn't have a chamber of commerce or a newspaper, it
takes involvement by almost everyone to make a drive of this nature successful.
The Hamlet Library drive was organized by the Friends of the Library, a group
of volunteers. Possibly the most striking thing about this— the largest fund-
raising drive in the city's history- was the sheer variety of activites. Talks
and slide shows were presented to every civic club and organization in the city.
There were bake sales, book sales, Christmas craft sales, a "buy a brick" campaign.
(.
Its, country hams, gingerbread houses and other donated items were raffled.
drive began with a Tupperware party. Just about every small town fundraising
effort was used, in addition to soliciting individual donations. Hamlet is not
home to large corporations, SO the funds had to be raised through small donations.
The Seaboard Festival, named for the Seaboard Coastline Railroad which once
served the city, is a different sort of project. It is, in essence, a community
celebration- a block party in the downtown. The board of directors solicits
crafts exhibitors, publicizes the event, including the "Meet Me At The Depot"
reunions, and handles the details of assigning booths, but the participation
of the people in Hamlet is what makes the festival special. The shows at the
theatre all utilize local, volunteer talent. Churches and senior citizens groups
are among the food vendors, and many of the arts and crafts exhibitors are local
folks.
The festival draws many from out-of-town, but it is still an event that gives
the people of Hamlet a chance to walk downtown and visit with friends and acquain-
tances in festive surroundings. That's its special quality.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
LIBRARY
iends of Library
200
Fundraising, Design Program
-namlet City Council
6
Financial- $150,000 Matching Money
-Richmond County Library
15
Consultants, Obtained Grant,
Board
Contributions
-Civic Groups
.185
Volunteerism, Contributions,
HOSPITAL
Promotion
-Hamlet Hospital Board of
14
Policy Planning, Focus Community
Trustees
Support, Negotiated Contracts
-Hamlet City Council
6
Provided backing of bonds, Ensured
Operating Expense
-Hamlet Hospital Auxiliary
50
Bake Sales, Auctions, Community
Support
-Hamlet Ministerial Assoc
30
Informed Community, Rallied Support
-Hamlet Hospital I Medical
105
Community Awareness, Solicited
SEABOARD FESTIVAL
Support
-Seaboard Festival Committee
15
Plan Festival, Raise Funds,
Publicity
-Railroad Museum Board
15
Coordinate events at Festival,
Contribute events and displays
-Richmond County Arts Council
20
Obtained Grant and Leadership,
Publicity
-Hamlet Public Library
6
Storytelling, Games, Publicity
-Hamlet City Council
6
Contributions, Manpower
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
The success of all three projects was a direct result of getting a wide variety
of citizens involved and active in their community. The Friends of the Library
enjoyed the support of all segments of the city including a large contingent of
children in their book sales and "buy a brick" campaigns. Civic clubs and individ-
uals donated time and money to truly give our citizens a sense of ownership.
The hospital campaign used extensive help from the senior citizens of our
community who make up a large portion of our citizenry. Medical staff, employees
and the Ministerial Association brought a great deal of influence on the decision
makers to see that this critical need for our community remain available to all.
Their success can be measured by attendance at public hearings and signatures
on petitions.
The Seaboard Festival has used a cross-section of the community from the
old to the young to celebrate Hamlet's heritage as a railroad community. Churches
sell food, the library has children's stories and games, class reunions and street
dances are held, SO that with the crafts and music, everyone is a part of the
fun and the community.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone
Title
RARY
va Jernigan. 302 Main St., 919/582-3477 Librarian- Hamlet Library
Trent Strickland. 306 McLean St., 919/582-0085 Richmond County Library Board
Marshall Brown. 215 Main St., 919/582-5707 Chairman- Fundraising Campaign
HOSPITAL
Abbie Covington. 415 Entwistle St., 919/582-3611 Mayor, Chair- Board of Trustees
Tommy Smart. P.O. Box 791, 919/582-1776 Past Mayor, Board of Trustees
Dr. Fred McQueen. 104 Rice St., 919/582-4003 Chairman- Medical Staff
SEABOARD FESTIVAL
Rev. Francis Womack. 200 Rice St., 919/582-0111 Chairman- Seaboard Festival Comm.
Jake Covington. 112 Fayetteville St., 919/582-0492 Board Member
Irene Lewis. UCB 114 Main St., 919/582-4022 Sec.- Seaboard Festival Comm.
All addresses include Hamlet, N.C. 28345
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
The obstacles at the library were raising the money and convincing people
that the historic old library would be saved and incorporated with the new. Some
citizens debated the expense of a new library with other needs perhaps going unmet.
The hospital project had the county newspaper take a very strong stand against
any help or partnership with the city or county. This was done both editorially
and by feature articles. In addition, financial concerns were complicating the
negotiations with the local governments.
The Seaboard Festival had to address the problem of how to include the various
Jps that wanted to participate in the festival and keep it from being dominated
by any one group, but open and representative of all. The board had to be small
enough to function, but open enough to allow the maximum input.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
To reassure the community concerning the preservation of the old building,
a preliminary sketch of the project was prepared for public viewing. Support
was solicited from the Hamlet Woman's Club, the original founders of the library
in the 1920's, and one of its charter members endorsed the project and assured
the community of its necessity. As outlined earlier, the funds were raised by
a broad-based campaign that involved the entire community.
The hospital, like the library, was crucial for Hamlet to remain a vital COMMU-
nity with an identity. The hospital board, in conjunction with the medical staff,
the Ministerial Association, local citizens, hospital staff, and volunteers began
an extensive one-on-one campaign with local elected officials on both a city and
county level. Both elective bodies yielded to this extensive citizen involvement
despite opposition from the local newspaper, resulting in a unique public-private
partnership that saved our hospital.
The Seaboard Festival came up with a committee that has representatives of
S?
ral different participating groups. They have an executive board and appointed
In
committees that increases not only input, but participation. As the festival
has grown, these committees are the key to its success and diversity as well as
its popularity.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
This application is a result of looking at the civic index and feeling that as a
community, we have done well in several of the areas. Citizen participation and volunteer-
ism are the bedrock of making our community a better place to live. All the projects
have their genesis in people wanting to help people, thus making their community better.
lamlet, volunteerism runs the gamut from a very successful Little League sports pro-
gram, to social concerns with the churches sponsoring and manning a soup kitchen for
the underprivileged. Senior volunteers march for the future in our March of Dimes Walk
America as civic clubs contribute by building and improving almost every recreational
facility in the city. Volunteers work to extend hours and defray costs.
Volunteerism coupled with civic pride and help from the City Council has proved to
be successful. No child has ever been turned down in any of our athletic leagues for
either skill level or ability to pay. We currently have four profressional athletes play-
ing major league baseball or in the NFL. These men benefited from our programs without
regard to race, influence or family income. Volunteers help senior citizens both at our
senior center and nursing homes to form arts and crafts groups, senior music groups and
excursions to nearby recreational facilities. Volunteers from our churches man the soup
kitchen and women's shelter. Volunteers at the hospital serve meals and words of encour-
agement to patients and staff. Library helpers plan activities for our children and help
the staff when needed. Our churches working together provide for these and other im-
portant social ministries.
Through working together, we have overcome our limitations and history to become
a very progressive city. We have a female mayor. We have elected a black city council
member in an at-large election although the minority portion of the population is less
than 25% of the total. A sense of community is the vital glue that binds our people to-
gether. The heartbeat of Hamlet is the people, in that we support each other in our
sorrows and celebrate in our accomplishments.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Hamlet is a small city that has several disadvantages that make growth and develop-
difficult. The city is not the county seat and is more than an hour from an inter-
state. The city has one of the smallest per capita tax bases in the State of North
Carolina. The traditional railroad employment base has been eroded from the decline of
passenger service and the consolidation of the rail industry. The decline in the 1950's,
1960's and 1970's have torn at the center of our heritage and economic base.
Planning was once an afterthought. Years of letting the situation deteriorate left
us with a lack of vision or clear direction for self-promotion and improvement in eco-
nomic and cultural activities. The political leadership was satisfied with the status
quo and this led to years of decline and neglect. Citizen participation declined and
apathy reigned as a sense of hopelessness and helplessness developed. Race relations
were distant and mistrustful. A new direction and sense of pride were needed at the poli-
tical and community level.
This pride began to develop with the election of new people to city government in
the late '70's and early '80's. This new leadership brought a change in attitude and
a sense of cooperation. Race relations improved as policy of inclusion instead of exclu-
sion became the norm. A decision to re-build the infrastructure and commit to the future
was made by building a senior center, a new city hall, fire station, wastewater treat-
ment plant and recreational complex. All this was accomplished in the '80's and was done
with voter-backed bonds and sweat equity. Volunteerism became the rule as people began
to sense that our community had a future. There are still obstacles and problems. Our
economic climate is better, but fragile. Cooperation with other governmental units is
good, but needs to be stronger as we face the mounting crisis of our environment. Drugs
in our schools and neighborhoods need constant attention and vigilance. The city has
funded a Drug Information Officer in the schools and plans a stronger interdiction pro-
gr- Financial and land use planning continue to require foresight.
S a community, we are more appreciative of accomplishments knowing where we have
been. This new spirit of optimism is contagious as pride and vision return in the hearts
and minds of our people. We owe nothing less than our best effort for our children.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
1. Remember that newspapers and radio stations are not the only means
of communication in a small town. Use civic clubs and associations
to spread the message once a goal or focus has been determined.
2. Use citizen involvement in as many activities as possible. This
develops a sense of accomplishment and ownership by the community
as a whole.
3. Try to be inclusive as possible. The wider the base of support for
a goal, the easier it is to form a consensus for action.
4. Remember that community institutions such as hospitals and libraries
are important to the people of your community. They will rally to
support them, if asked.
5. It is fine to look for outside help, but in the end, the success of a
project depends on utilizing the resources of your community.
6. Local governments have limited resources and are much more likely to
support a project, if the people are already supporting it.
7. Don't underestimate the generosity and willingness to work of the
people of your community. If the citizens are aroused and motivated,
small towns can do big things.
8. Nothing succeeds like success. Accomplishing one project whets the
civic appetite for another project.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of a community: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Strong Mayor
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
53,257
(1980)
below 18 years 14,832
28%
(1980)
(1988 or most recent) 55,720
(1990)
18-25 24
6,234
12%
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
20 05 25-34
8,698
16%
(1970-1988) -21.7 (70-80) ;+4.6% (80-90)
30 50 30 50 35-54
9,656
18%
POPULATION DENSITY
85
55-64
5,719
11%
(1988 or most recent) 549 (80) (90)
Over 05 +
8,128
15%
PERCENTAGE MINORITY (1980)
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY (80)
Black
44%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic 4%
Manufacturing
14.9%
Asian
1%
Trade (retail/wholesale) 15.5%
Other 1.5%
Agriculture 0%
Disability 11.4%
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME 14,182 (80)
Services 15%
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL 20.4% (80)
(percentage pre-WWII) 57% (80)
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 9.4% (80) ; 5.1% (9/89)
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS 77
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME Napoleon A. Saunders
TITLE Business Administrator
ORGANIZATION City of Harrisburg
ADDRESS
10 North Second Street. Suite 302
CITY/STATE/ZIP Harrisburg, PA 17101
TELEPHONE
SIGNED
717-255-6470 DATE
4-19-90
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME John J. Kane
TITLE CDBG Compliance Officer
ORGANIZATION City of Harrisburg
ADDRESS
10 North Second Street, Suite 206
CITY/STATE/ZIP Harrisburg, PA 17101
TELEPHONE
717-255-6402
SIGNED John June
DATE
4/19/90
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fce includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz, to present the finalists' cases.
1.
Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
A.
Harrisburg from 1960 to 1980 lost 1/3 of its population, 800 businesses,
suffered two major floods and the Three Mile Island disaster. As both State
Capitol and County Seat, 54% of the land is tax exempt. Its bonds were
unmarketable. In 1981, Federal and State governments froze grants to the City due
to mismanagement.
A reform administration took office in 1982 and began an urban renaissance.
Harrisburg once rated by HUD as the second most distressed City in the Nation
became the second best financial investment in the east.
B.
In 1989 when only local elected offices were filled, 44.2% of City voters
participated in the primary and 42.4% in the general election; both parties
endorsed the Mayor and incumbent Council majority was defeated in primary.
Carefully developed suggestions are offered at well attended public hearings.
Projects proposed in this application have helped to increase the number and
strength of groups. Usually four or more persons seek each public office.
Economic Development, especially downtown, has included combinations of
non-profit, private and City; and a growing number of strictly private projects.
Three new financial institutions located offices in the City during the past three
years and another bank constructed its 12 story headquarters here.
Parks Partnership uses private funds, projects are planned by existing or
newly formed neighborhood group pledged to care for facility in the future.
City Island used donated plans and construction, interest on bond funds and
capital improvements by private operators and non-profit organizations.
C & D. Commercial development projects, 1986-89, totaled $627,847,641. and
created 6,422 full time jobs. During the same period residential projects totaled
$115,331,975.
Seven recreational sites have been completed and funds for four additional
sites raised by the Parks Partnership since its formation in 1987. The major
spinoff is the creation of neighborhood groups where none had existed. These
groups then undertake other neighborhood improvement tasks including housing,
general cleaning of the area, crime watch, fire prevention, participation in public
hearings.
The success of initial City Island projects encouraged both private parties
and non-profit organizations to propose additional projects which they will fund.
Since 1987, at least three new attractions have been annually added to City Island.
Many other projects since 1986 demonstrate increasing cooperation between all
sectors, growing community pride and confidence. A developer constructed and
donated a shell building, CDBG provided for site improvements, neighborhood
organization will operate and maintain. Non-profit organization, aided by a
variety of federal and state funds, is renovating former Hill Cafe Hotel into low
rental units. Federal, state, county and city cooperated to finance the new Senior
Citizen Center which is owned and operated by a local non-profit.
The City has improved existing housing through CDBG rehabilitation, rental
rehabilitation, homesteading; new housing through a UDAG, two HODAG's and
incentives to developers.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
A. Since 1986, commercial development exceeded 627 million dollars and
created 6,422 jobs. Greatest change can be seen downtown where the non-profit
development corporation, Harristown, and the City cooperated on the Hilton Hotel
Convention Center and Strawberry Square II shopping restoration projects.
Private developers aided by historic tax credits created office space at
former Senate Hotel, Colonial Theater, Feller, Keystone, U.S.F.and G.,
Payne-Shoemaker and Durbin buildings.
Dauphin Deposit constructed a 12 story headquarters building with 304 space
garage. Vartan completed an office building opposite the renovated Transportation
Center which serves Amtrak, Greyhound and Trailways; has another building under
construction and announced two other downtown structures,
The Parking Authority has completed its fourth garage and announced the
location for its next facility. Private firm constructed a garage to serve the
state office complex.
Harristown and Urban Transit funds provided for a local bus transfer station
on Market Square and funds from the non-profit development corporation financed
Market Street site improvements.
The Urban League restored a vacant historic building as its headquarters and
is recruiting personnel for the Hotel-Convention Center. PA Manufacturers Assn.
and Red Cross built new structures. Numerous storefronts were renovated to
historic standards.
Economic development projects involving all three sectors have also been
carried out in neighborhood commercial areas. A business development center
created, new industrial plants built and vacant factories renovated.
Past conflicts between the sectors have been put aside and current leadership
is shared, it is results oriented, risk-taking and the door is open to all.
Government performance in economic development has gone from non-existent to
outstanding. Problems are resolved through consensus. Information is shared
through numerous news conferences and open discussion. Minority participation is
required.
B. Founded in 1987, the Parks Partnership has reconstructed 7 sites, has
funds available for 4 more, raised $501,013. as of 1/1/90. Partnership helps form
neighborhood group where none exists; citizens make decisions on playgrounds
facilities, prevent vandalism and litter. Partnership helps group with other
interest including crime watch, area cleanup, housing, fire prevention, improving
organizational skills. Parks Partnership encourages citizen participation and
community leadership by creating new citizen groups and upgrading skills of
existing organizations. It uses volunteers to train neighborhood groups in
organizational skills and raises funds from individuals, corporations and
foundations. Persons learn how to build neighborhood concensus and how best to get
results. Program fosters community vision and pride, and effort becomes ongoing.
C. City Island was not restored following the 197₫ flood. It became a place
for well publicized illicit activities. A local design firm contributed a plan for
recreational development and Mayor spearheaded a campaign in which local
contractors built a stadium and minor league professional baseball returned to
Harrisburg in 1987. Non-profit group raised funds and constructed a paddlewheeler.
Private persons/firms obtain permits and installed facilities including:
refreshment stands, marina, boat rental, water taxi, rowing club, steam railroad,
horse drawn carriage ride. City used interest revenue to demolish old buildings,
construct separate field for football minor league team and play areas. New
features are added each year, in 1990 a full service restaurant with
has been announced. Tax revenue is not used.
City Island demonstrates the Civic Index factors of community 1
volunteerism-philanthropy, capacity for cooperation and concensus bu
provides activities where diverse racial and ethnic groups interact.
community pride and demonstrates to all that the entire City can be
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
A. Loss of 800 businesses over a period of twenty years, a 9.4% unemployment
rate, vacant-blighted commercial buildings in both downtown and neighborhood
business areas were highly visible signs of the city's distress.
In the downtown, a non-profit development corporation, Harristown, was
the sole renewal promoter, then the City undertook a leadership role coordinating
the resources of the non-profit, private and governmental sectors. Larger projects
often involves the three sectors. Some projects may involve the City assisting the
private sector through historic tax credits or low interest loans.
Revitalization in neighborhood commercial areas are encouraged by
revolving fund loans to businesses and rental rehabilitation loans for apartments
over stores, plus city site improvements such as reconstruction of sidewalks.
B. Harrisburg Parks Partnership grew from a need to upgrade 42 parks and
recreational sites with non-government funds. Non-profit corporation was created
to solicit funds and to insure the longevity of the program. Partnership staff
works with existing neighborhood group or where there is none, they help to form an
organization. After participating in the Parks Partnership experience such
organizations stay together and undertake other neighborhood improvements.
C. City Island was abandon after flood and became a widely publicized place
for crime/illicit activities. Past glory was gone; it was a symbol of City's
failure. Making the Island into a better attraction than it had ever been, would
show region the City could be restored.
First task was for private contractors to donate equipment, material,
labor to build a baseball stadium and for private parties to bring a minor league
team back to Harrisburg which had lost a team in the fifties. Local firm donated
master plan for island. Parties interested in operating various facilities made
capital improvements and City added other recreational facilities. Non-profit
organization raised funds and constructed a riverboat. City Island has added
several privately funded attractions each year.
Rather than attempt a massive theme park, the City has coordinated a
series of annual improvements, gaining greater local support and participation.
City Island offers family fun which is affordable to all.
Common elements to these three projects and numerous other improvements
have been the visionary leadership of the Mayor, the citizens' reaction to finding
a true problem solver, and the willingness of private and non-profit leaders to
support the public sector risk taker.
Earlier administrations were passive, Mayor Reed insisted that City be an
equal partner in downtown rebirth. After initial conflict, City's role was
accepted by non-profit development corporation, Redevelopment Authority, and
private developers. Resources added by City were able to get stalled projects
moving; if one funding source failed another was found quickly with Mayor's
personal assistance. There were no public funds for restoring recreation sites.
Mayor conceived the idea of an independent Parks Partnership to raise funds and
require neighborhood participation, then insured cooperation from City's Parks and
Recreation staff.
Likewise the Mayor saw that City Island was a symbol of the City's
condition. Large contractors were personally called upon to do their civic duty
and volunteered equipment, men and material. Once the baseball stadium was built
and team obtained, the Mayor's open door invitation for others to participate
attracted non-profits groups and private individuals who offered to install and
operate other facilities. Baseball stadium seating has been expanded annually.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Harristown Dev. Corp.
16 Directors
Strawberry Sq. developer; Hotel partner;
(and affiliates)
Market St. improvements
Urban League
130
Bldg. developer; Hotel minority recruitment
HB Alexander & Son
Private
Restored 4 historic office bldgs.
Vartan Enterprises
Private
2 new bldgs. ; 1 underway; 2 announced
4th-Walnut Assn.
18
Restored historic commercial block
Dauphin Deposit Bank
Private
12 story headquarters; separate garage
Leon Weiner Assoc.
Private
100 CC townhouse apts; 100 more '90; 20% L/M
Hbg. Eco. & Comm. Affairs
50
Vacant bldgs. to 35 L/M apts.
Frank Robino Co.
Private
85 new homes completed; 13 underway
American Red Cross
3,000
Built new regional headquarters
PA. Manufacturers Assn.
9,000
Built new headquarters
Central Allison Hill Assn.
250
Community Center; Rehabilitate houses
Sr. Citizen Center
750
New facility
3rd St. Business Assn.
45
Restore neighborhood commercial area
Hill Business Assn.
35
Restore neighborhood shopping area
Parks Partnership
27 Directors
Direction, raise funds; 200 donors
Wilson Pk. Neighbor.
200
Tot lot; shelter
Pleasant View Neigh.
30
Younger children playground
7th & Radnor Ballfield
150
Seating, restrooms, soccer-football goals
4th & Emerald Neigh.
20
Playground improvements
Sunshine Pk. Neigh.
50
New tot-lot added
Italian Lake Neigh.
50
Dredge and landscaping, lights, seating
Summit Terrace Assn.
40
Playground; cleanup; community bldg.
Riverfront Peoples Pk.
50
Restore gardens; plant 300 trees
Hbg. Youth Soccer
175
Spinoff from Parks Partnership
Riverboat Society
500
Raised funds; built paddlewheeler boat
Hbg. Rowing Club
60
Public sculling program
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
A. Details of individual plans were announced at Mayoral news conferences
and given wide notice through television, radio and newspaper. Well publicized
meetings and public hearings were held on changes in obsolete renewal plans,
proposed traffic changes, applications for federal or state assistance for specific
projects, impact of new structures upon the area. Citizens were informed and fully
participated in meetings of the Planning Commission, City Council and, when
necessary to hold, Zoning Hearing Board appeals. Citizens contributed much to the
affirmative action policy for all downtown construction.
B. Parks Partnership program can not proceed without citizen involvement in
the neighborhood. If no group exists one must be formed. Fliers, neighborhood
canvassing, word of mouth, phone calls, announcements from neighborhood pulpits are
all used to get residents to meetings and to become involved. Group must decide
type of playground needed and pledge to care for the facility.
C. City Island's donated master plan was widely publicized and interested
groups and citizens invited to contact the City. The plan is flexible and ide-
of others willing to carryout specific projects were incorporated. For
the Riverboat Society was formed by citizens who wished to recreate
boat. The group raised funds and members actually help to const
City obtained required dock permits from the state and wharf
the plans. When citizens formed the Harrisburg Rowing Club, c
teach the sport to the public, the City provided part of the rt
Private persons who proposed to operate such individual attract.
water taxi, boat rentals, carriage ride, steam train, and restau
welcomed and feature incorporated into plan.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Name
Address/Phone (717)
Title
Al Wm. Alexander, 315 Vaughn, Hbg 17110, 234-7041, Pres. HB Alexander, Developer
A2 Russell Ford, Strawberry Sq. Hbg 17101, 236-5061, V P Harristown Develop. Corp.
A3 Kinneth Washington, 25 N. Front, Hbg 17101, 234-5925, Exec. Dir. Urban League
B1 Terri Burkholder, 1830 S. 19th, Hbg 17104, 986-9350, Pres. Parks Partnership
B2 Georgianne Jennings, 2512 Agate, Hbg 17110, 238-2599, Neighborhood Group Member
B3 Jacquelynne Lapitsky, 10 N. 2nd, Hbg 17101, 255-3083, Parks Partnership Staff
C1 Drew Miller, 413 Walnut, Hbg 17101, 234-6414, Pres. Design Consortium
C2 Richard Redd, 10 N. 2nd, Hbg 17101, 231-4444, G.M. Baseball Team
C3 Michael Trephan, 33 N. 23rd, Camp Hill, PA 17011, 737-0238, Owner Steam Train
Past Pres. Riverboat Society
7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
originate?
1. Harristown, the non-profit corporation for downtown development,
initially resisted any active role for new City administration, since former
administrations had been passive "rubber stamps".
2. A majority of City Council members acted as if the former Commission form
of government was in effect. -Actions included suits against Mayor and baseball
team, passage of ordinance that caused firm to cancel plans to locate large
corporate headquarters in City and failing to act on resolution to obtain State
grant for new industry which then went elsewhere.
3. Daily newspaper ran stories with slanted statistics comparing City with
suburbs or carried stories on reports detrimental to City while neglecting to
mention figures for suburban communities which were worst.
4. Some neighborhoods lacked individuals skilled in leadership for Park
Partnership program or did not have a neighborhood group.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
1.
New administration demanded equal role. Proved ability with private
sector-city projects, gained public support.
2. Council members were defeated in primary. Citizens elected pèrsons
supportive of administration. Mayor won both parties' nomination and was reelected
for third term.
3. After newspaper stopped printing "letter to the editor" rebuttals,
supporters purchased large paid advertisement space to correct stories. Over
period of time newspaper appears to have become less hostile - more cooperative.
4. Where necessary Partnership staff and volunteers worked with groups
teaching them basic skills in conducting meetings, ways to survey needs, decision
making techniques and setting goals. Where no group existed, Partnership
volunteers help residents to become organized. Volunteers also assists groups to
undertake other projects to resolve neighborhood problems through technical
assistance.
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Government Performance
The City's renaissance since 1982 has been possible because of visionary
leadership of the Mayor; the attraction of competent professionals to government
service; openess to the media, organizations and individual citizens; developing
innovative revenue sources; consideration of private service sources; and working
closely with other sectors. City employees are held to high ethical standards and
must be drug free.
Since 1986, the City has received creditation for accounting practices from
the Municipal Financial Officers Association and for police operations from the
Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Philadelphia Area
Offices advises the City has the highest percentage of funds expended to minority
contractors and is second only to Philadelphia in total dollars expanded to
minority firm. The same federal agency which cut off funding in 1981, now
recommends that other communities staff visit Harrisburg to learn its methods of
operation.
The Mayor is a risk taker who has developed close links with other community
leaders so that he can call upon them when needed. Local private resources have
provided additional project funds when either out of town entities or other
governmental agency failed to provide its share.
The City understands the value of cooperation and is willing to share the
community leadership role with persons from the private and non-profit sector.
Proposals are looked at for the long range effect, not short term. Maximum use is
made of volunteerism and philanthropy.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Citizen Participation In Some Neighborhoods
Some areas lack a strong neighborhood organization. In a few places,
residents are mostly state workers who live in small apartment then return to their
hometowns each weekend. Residents of other areas are very low income families who
frequently move.
Fire and Police conduct prevention programs at schools and for adults at
locations throughout the City. For youngster there are local coloring books on
City history, fire and crime prevention. Schools have expanded civic education
programs. The City funds innovative classes for low income students.
Professional staff and volunteers of Parks Partnership, which provides private
funds to renovate playgrounds works with existing groups to improve their
organizational skills and helps to create neighborhood group where none exists.
Staff insures that all in area know of meetings and residents must decide what type
of playground they want; small children, sports for teenagers, etc. The group must
commit itself to preventing vandalism, litter and to care for facility in the
future. Groups often express other community needs and Partnership staff helps
them organize crime watch, area cleanup, housing improvements, street and utility
maintenance, fire prevention, leadership skills, dealing effectively with City
agencies.
Since 1986, City has aided three neighborhood organizations to develop their
own Community Center buildings. Three different methods were used: CDBG funds
renovated large abandon building, apartment above provides funds for group to
maintain. Developer donated new shell building, City did site improvements, group
conducts fund raising activities. At third location, developer contributed first
floor on long term lease to group in exchange for City rental rehabilitation of
upstairs apartments.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
Persons who assist in renaissance are put on a Community Leaders mailing list
and are invited to all groundbreakings, award ceremonies and special events.
Person is recognized as a part of the team and is encouraged to continue efforts.
Local celebrations not held for years were resumed and new events added.
Harrisburg has St. Patrick's Day Parade, Intercultural Celebration on Memorial Day
Weekend, Independence Day Weekend, Antique Fire Pumpers Weekend, Kipona Weekend
over Labor Day, Historic Home Tours, Holiday Parade before Christmas.
Neighborhoods also hold block parties to which everyone is invited. These events
bring persons from throughout the region together and foster civic pride.
In addition to providing private funds for restoration of recreational sites,
Parks Partnership volunteers and staff develop neighborhood groups where none exist
and improve organizational skills for existing groups wishing such assistance. In
addition to recreational improvement, group soon undertake other neighborhood
improvements. Increases Citizen Participation and builds civic pride.
The Parks Partnership also provides a means for interested citizens living
outside the City and regional businesses to participate in the renaissance. These
parties know that a region can not prosper without a sound core city. Such an
effort can achieve greater regional cooperation in other activities.
The administration is open to proposals from any source, as illustrated by the
development of City Island. There was no large single entity available and a
consortium would have taken more time. After contractors donated labor and
materials and City used non-tax funds for initial improvement, private businesses
and non-profit organizations undertook capital improvements in exchange for park
permits. The result is an outstanding regional attraction, affordable to all,
without large municipal investment or administrative cost. Each party has control
over its operation with the City providing guidance and coordination.
After receiving 1984-85 All America Award for housing, arts and humanities,
the City at presentation of flag awarded individual All America City Certificates
to organizations and individuals who help achieve the award. Emphasis was placed
on need for continued and greater citizen participation as much remained to be
done. Firms donated billboards, public vehicles were marked and award was widely
publicized. There was a marked increase in support from non-profits, private firms
and individual citizens. If honored by a 1990 Award, we plan a like ceremony to
recognize those who made the honor possible.
In summary, the City of Harrisburg, considered the second most distressed
city in the U.S. in 1980, has, by sheer determination, long-range planning and
strong leadership from the public, private and nonprofit sectors, reversed three
decades of very serious decline with major net gains in the number of businesses,
jobs and livable homes. Property values have increased for the first time in
25 years and the crime, fire and unemployment rates have dropped. All of this
progress happened during a decade marked by substantially reduced Federal domestic
funding with most of this progress being realized in the period of 1986 to 1990.
We believe what has been learned and demonstrated in Harrisburg can be a model to
other urban comunities of our Nation.
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OFFICIAL ENTRY
1990
I hereby nominate Coeur d'Alene
Kootenai
Idaho
(Community)
(County)
(State)
for the
ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD
FOR
CITIZEN ACTION, EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION
AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT
a program of
THE NATIONAL CIVIC LEAGUE
sponsored by
THE ALLSTATE FOUNDATION
T
HE ALL-AMERICA CITY AWARD IS INTENDED AS A CONSTANT REMINDER THAT PEOPLE IN A COMMUNITY CAN
work together to identify and solve their common problems. The 40 year-old AAC Program is a major part of the National Civic
League's effort to encourage and recognize civic excellence. The stories of All-America Cities are the stories of citizens, government and
businesses joining together to make their communities better places to live.
Central to our approach to the issue of civic excellence has been the development of the concept of "civic infrastructure." In our
view, analogous to the physical infrastructure of a community-roads, bridges, buildings-is an equally important civic infrastructure
which is vitally important to the future of the community and equally in need of periodic maintenance and revision. Civic infrastructure
is is a qualitative concept intended for use in evaluating the social and political fabric of a community: how decisions aremade, how citizens
interact with one another and government, and how challenges to the community are met.
We have developed a CIVIC INDEX of ten components which we believe constitute a means to evaluate a community's civic
infrastructure. The specific components are less important than the recognition that difficulties in the community are recognized,
confronted, and resolved in ways that involve a braod sampling of the population and a high degree of consensus. The All-America City
program includes the CIVIC INDEX in its application process so that communities will examine their civic infrastructure and find ways
to strengthen it. The ten components of the CIVIC INDEX are presented and described at the back of this application booklet.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
For the figures provided below, please indicate the year upon which statistics are based and the source of the information.
FORM OF GOVERNMENT Mayor-Council
POPULATION BREAKDOWN by AGE GROUP (if available)
POPULATION
below 18 years 1980 census: 5249
(1988 or most recent) 1988: 24,222
18-25
18-24
2675
PERCENTAGE CHANGE (+ or-),
26-35
25-34
3492
(1970-1988) + 49%
36-50
35-54
3618
POPULATION DENSITY
51-65
55-64
1848
(1988 or most recent) 1988: 2056/sq. mi.
Over 65
65+
3172
PERCENTAGE MINORITY
WORKFORCE DISTRIBUTION by INDUSTRY
Black
.1%
(percentage of total employed in each)
Hispanic
1.4%
Manufacturing
20.8
Asian
1%
Trade (retail/wholesale) 24.8
Other
1%
Agriculture
1.0
MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME 1989: $25,000 *
Services (incl. gov't) 53.4
PERCENTAGE of FAMILIES
AGE OF HOUSING STOCK
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL 1989: 8.7%
(percentage pre-WWII) 31%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE 1989: 5.9% *
No. VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS 158
*numbers are for Kootenai County; City data not gathered
All-America City Award Applicant (Does not have to be the same person designated as the program contact)
NAME
Raymond L. Stone
TITLE
Mayor
ORGANIZATION City of Coeur d'Alene
ADDRESS
710 Mullan Avenue
CITY/STATE/ZIP Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814
TELEPHONE SIGNED
208-667-9533
DATE 4/18/40
All-America City Award Contact (Major contact person available throughout competition and for follow-up)
NAME
Brad Dugdale
TITLE
Investment Executive
ORGANIZATION D.A. Davidson
ADDRESS
505 Front Avenue, Suite 203
CITY/STATE/ZIP Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814
TELEPHONE 208-667-1212
SIGNED Bially 1
DATE
+/13/90
RULES and INSTRUCTIONS
T
HE ENTRY BLANK SHOULD BE COMPLETED AND MAILED, ALONG WITH TWO (2) PHOTOCOPIES, TO THE ALL-
America City Awards Program, National Civic League, 1601 Grant Street, Suite 250, Denver, CO 80203, at the earliest possible date,
but must arrive no later than 5 p.m., April 20th, 1990. Do not include additional information or sheets. All responses must be completed
within the lines on the pages of the application form. Applicants that include additional materials or pages will be automatically
disqualified. No reduction in type size will be permitted. Type may be no smaller than that of a standard typewriter, 10 or 12 characters
per inch. Enclose $400 filing fee or $300 filing fee if the applicant is a member of the National Civic League. The $400 filing fee includes
a one-year membership in the League. A Screening Committee of civic affairs experts will meet on May 4-5, 1990 in Washington, D.C.
to choose the finalists who will than be invited to send representatives to appear before the All-America City Jury on June 7-9, 1990 in
Phoenix, Ariz, to present the finalists' cases.
1. Set the background for your community's story. Summarize your community situation, not the projects
described in Question No. 2, but events which contributed to and/or resulted from these projects.
A. The most basic problems and concerns of the community.
B. Extent and nature of citizen participation.
C. Degree of success attained.
D. Emphasize activity since 1986.
Newsweek called Coeur d'Alene one of the 10 most livable
cities in America. National Geographic describes the lake which
forms the city's southern border as one of the five most beautiful
in the world. Yet recently, despite its appealing lifestyle and
scenic beauty, social and economic problems threatened the fabric
of this North Idaho community and raised serious questions about
its future.
In 1970, drawn perhaps by the same qualities that attracted
so many others, The Church of Jesus Christ Christian, a racist,
anti-semitic, neo-Nazi sect, located its headquarters just north
of Coeur d'Alene. The church's message of hatred and discrimination
was quickly evident. Those activities peaked in the fall of 1986
when four bombs were detonated in Coeur d'Alene--one in the city's
Federal Building, one in the home of a Catholic priest who was a
human rights leader, and the other two in local businesses. As a
result, Coeur d'Alene was branded as a community of violent
racists. Yet a little more than a year later, a grass roots,
community-based human rights movement, organized as the "Kootenai
County Task Force on Human Relations" had won for Coeur d'Alene the
prestigious Raoul Wallenberg Civic Award in recognition of its
efforts to preserve and promote the principles of human rights,
human dignity, and the equality of all people.
The history of North Idaho, in economic terms, is the history
of mining, smelting, and lumbering. Silver, zinc, lead, and tall
stands of pine provided a good living for a hardy and hardworking
population. In 1981, the mining industry alone provided more than
8,000 jobs in the region. In 1985 only 500 of those jobs remained.
In 1987, in the face of already declining levels of employment in
the lumber industry, a large sawmill in Coeur d'Alene closed with
the loss of 500 jobs. Uncertainty in resource-based industries
argued strongly for the need to diversify. In February of 1987, 30
business and government leaders came together to plan for that
process. A month later, more than $1 million had been pledged to
implement their plan through a. new organization--"Jobs Plus."
A growing Coeur d'Alene meant a growing need for health
services. Without a local facility to provide radiation treatments
for cancer patients, local residents were forced to travel 80 miles
or more, round-trip, to receive that care in Spokane. Facing the
inconvenience and sometimes severe discomfort of patients, and the
prospect of overcrowded medical facilities in Spokane, the
"Kootenai Medical Center Foundation" and a team of volunteers went
to work on a solution. Discussions began in the Fall of 1986. By
1988, more than $500,000 had been raised and a new, free-standing
Cancer Care Center was in operation. Almost immediately, a
companion project was begun. Another $246,000 was raised and "The
Walden House, A Caring Place" was constructed to provide
inexpensive, comfortable housing for out-of-town outpatients and
for the families and friends of those confined to the hospital.
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2. Briefly describe the three main projects that citizens have accomplished in the community since 1986 to merit
an All-America City Award. How does each project relate to the Civic Index? (See Civic Index, attached.)
HUMAN RELATIONS TASK FORCE--From its inception, the Human
Relations Task Force has had as its goals the support of victims
of discrimination and harassment, the education of the citizens of
North Idaho and the Pacific Northwest region concerning the
principles of human equality, dignity, and freedom, and the passage
of legislation supporting human rights. Toward those ends, the Task
Force's accomplishments have been extremely impressive. The Task
Force participates in local events and symposia, funds highway
billboards with the message "Idaho Is For Everyone," sponsors Coeur
d'Alene's Martin Luther King Day celebration, has produced in
conjunction with the local community college, over 30 PBS
television programs dealing with human rights, and co-sponsored a
5-day community symposium entitled, "Racism: Prejudice and
Progress." It provides support, counseling and legal assistance in
the event of an incident of harassment. It has worked with local
legislators to pass a body of legislation against hate crimes now
recognized as the nation's toughest and most comprehensive and
applauded in a June 3, 1989 resolution passed by the National
Conference of State Legislatures' Executive Committees. This
activity relates to all Civic Indices.
JOBS PLUS--A non-profit, privately funded organization
governed by a 17 member board of directors, Jobs Plus has proven
to be a remarkably successful economic development effort. Through
one-on-one marketing efforts conducted by the organization's staff,
and through a network of supporting volunteers, Jobs Plus has
played an active role in recruitment and development projects that
have totaled more than $90 million in capital investment in our
region and helped produce more than 1500 new jobs. Downtown
revitalization, regional shopping mall, theme park, greyhound race
track, aluminum can recycling smelter, and lighting fixture
manufacturer are just a few of the success stories in which Jobs
Plus played a significant role. This activity relates most closely
to Civic Indices 1,2,3,4,8 and 10.
KOOTENAI MEDICAL CENTER FOUNDATION--The Foundation is a
charitable corporation which supports Kootenai Medical Center, a
187 bed public hospital. Governed by nine appointed directors, the
Foundation was charged with the responsibility to raise a total of
nearly $900,000 to support construction of the North Idaho Cancer
Center and the Walden House, a Caring Place. Construction on the
Cancer Center began in May of 1987 and the building was dedicated
on January 30, 1988. Today, the Center provides treatment for an
average of 88 patients per day. The Walden House is an attractive,
two story frame structure with eight-bedrooms, a living room, and
dining room. A live-in housekeeper and volunteers help with
shopping and baby-sitting, and offer other services to the
families, friends, and outpatients who reside there. This activity
relates most closely to Civic Indices 1,2,4 and 9.
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3. What prompted these actions and how were they organized?
Not long ago, Coeur d'Alene was a city that mixed great
promise with some truly daunting problems. Scenic beauty, an
attractive, small-town lifestyle, convenient access to rail, air,
and highway transportation, abundant natural resources, a nearby
metropolitan area, and a low crime rate were factors that combined
to make the community extremely livable.
still, the future of the community was in serious doubt. The
resource-based economy that had built the area and provided the
majority of its jobs was faltering. Low base metal prices had
closed some mines, and forced others to exact wage cuts from
remaining employees. Lumbering, though less severely impacted than
mining, was changing too. Mills were automating to improve
profitability. Access to timber was blocked by ongoing
environmental concerns. The result was a dramatic decrease in
lumber-related employment.
On top of those problems, the presence of a high profile neo-
Nazi group produced isolated cases of minority harassment and even
a few incidents of violent hate crimes. Intense media coverage
convinced the region and even the nation that North Idaho was a
haven for racism and prejudice. In a different social arena, a
growing Coeur d'Alene was not meeting the medical needs of a major
patient population. Statistics gathered by Kootenai Medical Center
indicated that 25% of the cancer patients receiving radiation
treatments at nearby Spokane hospitals actually lived in the KMC
service area.
Together, those problems indicated action needed to be taken
to secure a sound future for the people of Coeur d'Alene a future
that held forth the promise of economic vitality, social justice,
and adequate medical care. To be worthwhile, that new future had
to be shared by all of the region's residents whites, blacks,
Jews, American Indians, hispanics, and orientals and it had to
be communicated to a nation that doubted whether such a future was
what the people of Coeur d'Alene wanted.
That vision prompted the formation of Jobs Plus, a private
economic development group, funded by hundreds of local donors and
organized around a small board of directors. The board hired a
chief executive and small staff who guided volunteers in a
marketing effort aimed at strengthening the area's infrastructure
for development and broadening the base of its economy always with
a view to maintaining the lifestyle that was the area's most
valuable asset.
That vision also prompted the formation of the Kootenai County
Task Force on Human Relations, an all-volunteer group made up of
educators, clergy, law enforcement professionals, attorneys, and
concerned citizens. From that membership, an executive board was
selected and a system of committees was formed to begin a program
of victim assistance, legal action, and education.
That vision gave the Kootenai Medical Center Foundation, a
not-for-profit corporation with a small governing board and a very
large network of volunteers, the mission to a create a local center
for cancer treatment and a related facility to support patients
receiving those treatments as well as their families, and friends.
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4. List the principal groups and organizations and the number of members actively involved in these efforts.
Include community action groups organized around the specific issues.
Name
Active Membership
Contribution
Cancer Center/Walden House
Kootenai Medical Center
30
raised $560,000
Foundation
"3Cs" Cancer Community Charities 600
raised $ 50,000
Jobs Plus
Jobs Plus "Stockholders"
365
$5 to $60,000
each - totaling
$1 million
Task Force
Coeur d'Alene Indian Tribe
350+council
Shared cultural/
ethnic heritage
at Task Force
events.
City of Coeur d'Alene
207
Provided
facilities/staff
support/
proclamations.
Kootenai County Public Schools 12,150
Adopted Human
Rights Curriculum
-released students
for Martin Luther
Day Celebrations.
5. How did these groups attempt to involve the citizens directly affected by the projects and to what extent were
they successful?
Task Force records indicate more than 15,000 people have
participated in sponsored events and hundreds of thousands more
have viewed 30 public service television broadcasts on human rights
topics. Citizen leaders, many representing minorities directly
affected by the threat of bigotry and violent racism, and political
leaders joined forces to successfully lobby for Idaho's nationally
recognized anti-hate crime laws.
Jobs Plus had its real birth in a March 1987 public meeting
attended by more than 1,000 concerned citizens. Asked to accept and
support the concept of a privately financed economic development
organization, those citizens raised $1 million in four weeks.
The North Idaho Cancer Center and Walden House also were
community-based efforts. The Cancer Community Charities, a 750-
member regional organization, is significant evidence of
involvement by those most affected by the project.
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6. For each of the three efforts, identify three individuals who were active leaders. (Include leaders from the public,
private and nonprofit sectors.)
Jobs Name Plus
Address/Phone
Title
Tom Richards/1500 E. Honeysuckle, Hayden Lake, ID 83835/Pres. Idaho Forest Ind.
Duane Hagadone/P.O. Box 1178, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/President Hagadone Corp.
Dennis Wheeler/505 Front, Ste 400, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/President Cd'A Mines
Task Force
Bill Wassmuth/PO Box 16776, Seattle, WA 98116/Ex. Dir. NW Coalition Mal. Har.
Tony Stewart/1000 W. Garden Ave., Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/President NW Coalition
Norm Gissel/1034 N. 3rd st., Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/Task Force President
Cancer Center/Walden House
Tom Richards/1500 E. Honeysuckle, Hayden Lake, ID 83835/President-KMC Foundation
Bill McCarty/505 Front, Ste 201, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/Chair, KMC Found Sp. Proj.
Nancy Jones/1112 Maple Ave. Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814/Pres. "3Cs" Cancer, Comm, Char.
originate? 7. (a) What was the nature of any obstacles to the efforts and from what segments of the community did obstacles
The impact of neo-Nazi activity in the Coeur d'Alene area
presented an extremely serious obstacle to the efforts described
in this application, and also posed a delicate problem.
The problem: How to counteract the affects of a potentially
violent group without engendering violence and without denying that
group its constitutional rights.
The obstacle: How to overcome the very negative affects of the
intense local, regional, and sometimes national publicity generated
by neo-Nazi activities activities often consciously structured
to create that publicity.
(b) How were the specific obstacles overcome?
The Task Force began with a mission statement that affirmed
and supported the rights of all people--even those espousing views
repugnant to most others. That belief guided the Task Force in a
non-violent course of action that carefully protected the rights
of neo-Nazis, while at the same time crafting nationally recognized
legislation against hate crimes in Idaho. The Task Force also was
keenly aware of the need to publicize its efforts. When bombs
exploded in Coeur d'Alene, the Task Force countered with a peaceful
community rally attended by almost 800 people. The Task Force also
took a very proactive stance, organizing the region's largest
annual Martin Luther King Day celebration, sponsoring public school
human rights projects, dedicating a section of North Idaho College
beach in honor of the Coeur d'Alene Indian Tribe, and promoting the
public service message, "Idaho Is For Everyone."
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8. What component of the Civic Index would you consider to be the strongest in your community? How was
this achieved?
Civic Index No. 4, "Volunteerism and Philanthropy" is clearly
Coeur d'Alene's greatest strength and a major reason for the
success of the projects described in this application. More than
350 individual donors contributed over $1 million to Jobs Plus.
The $796,000 raised to support the North Idaho Cancer Center and
Walden House involved hundreds of volunteers and literally
thousands of donors. And the Human Relations Task Force, though not
involved in a major fund-raising campaign, has relied on the
generosity of members and friends to support its ambitious program
of activities.
Other, recent success stories also could be told. The North
Idaho College Foundation has raised more than $550, 000 to construct
a Library/Computer Center. Coeur d'Alene senior citizen
organizations raised $404, 000 for a new senior center, and the
EXCEL Foundation has raised $145,00 to support excellence in local
public schools.
What better evidence of a strong non-profit sector and a
healthy climate for giving could be asked? Corporate support for
each of the programs named above has been outstanding, as has its
support of well know efforts like United Way. Finally, local
government has been an active partner in private sector fund
raising, while local charities have done much to support one
another.
9. Which Civic Index component would you consider to be the weakest in your community? What construc-
tive steps have been taken to strengthen it?
Civic Index No. 8, Capacity for Cooperation and Consensus
Building, has been a weakness in Coeur d'Alene public schools and
has hindered the community's ability to pass much needed levies and
bond issues. While interest in important issues is quite high, too
often solutions to problems have not been based on consensus. The
result is that the seeds of future conflict have been sewn in
attempts to resolve current problems.
In the past, too little emphasis was placed on cooperation and
little if anything was done to create an atmosphere and to teach
the skills that foster consensus building and conflict resolution.
Working cooperatively, North Idaho College and the Task Force
on Human Relations sponsored a week-long forum entitled, "Conflict:
Hostility or Harmony. " Noted speakers addressed topics including
"Crime and Society,' "Family and Society, 11 "Education and Society,
and "Religion and Society. II Each presentation by a keynote speaker
was followed by a panel discussion involving the speaker and
community leaders. The final day of the forum offered a special
conflict resolution training session and a town meeting built
around the topic, "Choices for Idaho's Second Century. " The entire
forum was open to the public without charge.
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10. Of the specific techniques that contributed to your community's success, which factors do you feel
others might adopt?
The Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations, Jobs Plus,
and the Kootenai Medical Center Foundation were successful for a
variety of reasons, some of which are common to all three groups,
and some of which are not.
Organizationally, the Task Force, Jobs Plus, and the KMC
Foundation are similar. Each relies on a large base of volunteer
support, but each also is structured to permit decision making by
relatively small governing boards. That combination produces at
least two principal benefits. First, a large base of volunteers
generates strength and purpose. Open lines of communication help
build consensus among a broad constituency and ensure that the
organization moves in directions supported by those constituents.
Second, a small governing board allows the organization to retain
flexibility, to act efficiently, and to respond quickly in critical
situations.
Each of the three groups also adopted specific techniques that
were instrumental in its success. The Task Force learned early on
that communication outside its membership was vital. To achieve
that communication, the following was done:
1. Adopt a comprehensive community program for promoting human
rights;
2. Adopt the use of TV, radio, and the printed media for
promoting positive human relations;
3. Adopt a comprehensive advertising campaign promoting
positive, intergroup community relations, and,
4. Encourage interfaith services addressing the problems of
bigotry and racism.
The Task Force now has developed a ready-made "Human Rights
Package." Other communities nationwide are seeking the resources
of our local group to introduce, lobby, & implement anti-hate
legislation. Local leaders frequently travel to other communities
to help organize human rights Chapters and assist in community
responses to hate-group activities. The Task Force is truly a
grass-roots organization in which the Coeur d'Alene community is
involved.
Jobs Plus is such an exciting grass-root, program that it
motivated nearby Spokane, Washington to raise over $5.8 million for
a program called "Momentum." The process and purpose was very
similar to Jobs Plus and the results are running parallel.
Jobs Plus realized from its inception that a working
partnership between business and government was essential for
success. City and County governments and local educational
institutions added their support to the organization's fund raising
campaign--often through innovative, in-kind contributions and
leaders from both government and the private sector are represented
on the Jobs Plus governing board.
The KMC Foundation found strength and support in an existing
network of charitable organizations. The ability to match a program
of development with the goals of those existing organizations was
a key to the tremendous popular success of the Foundation's fund
raising program and building campaign.
KEEP RESPONSES WITHIN LINES
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(Lange/Cawley)
July 30, 1990
5:30 P.M.
[CITIES.DOC]
PRESIDENTIAL REMARKS: ALL-AMERICAN CITIES AWARDS
THE ROSE GARDEN
MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1990
10:00 A.M.
Welcome! It's an honor and a pleasure to have you here at
the White House. [[
11.
You know, too often it seems that the function of the
Federal government is to make laws and set limits. That's one
reason this event is so special. Because the cities and citizens
we honor today are reminders that America's potential is truly
unlimited.
The All-American Cities are great American success stories.
In a time when so many mourn what's wrong with American cities,
you have quietly gone to work to make them right.
You have refused to surrender to crime, to drug dealers, to
despair, to natural disaster. You've refused to see the problems
of the homeless and the jobless as somehow impossible to solve.
Instead, you've set out to unleash the infinite range of
what's possible, when Americans put their minds to it. And along
the way, you've reaffirmed the American ideal of empowerment.
Empowerment sounds like a new idea -- but it's something
President Teddy Roosevelt well understood, and wanted to promote,
when he founded the National Civic League in 1894.
"There are many different ways," he once wrote, "in which a
man or a woman can work for the higher life of American cities."
2
Well, the men and women with us today are proving Teddy Roosevelt
right.
So we've gathered to celebrate the spirit of empowerment,
and the potential of partnerships -- perhaps unique to America
-- that in an earlier time could have built a meeting house, or
raised a barn on a windswept field.
Today, these All-American cities are forming partnerships
for challenges of every kind -- in small industrial towns and
urban canyons -- as citizens, businesses, government and
volunteers are joining forces for the future of their
communities.
In some cases they've mobilized after an accident, like
Flight 232 in Sioux City, Iowa -- whose citizens had planned and
acted on an outstanding emergency, response system.
Or they've responded to a natural disaster, the way the
people of Charlotte, North Carolina did after Hurricane Hugo.
All Americans were uplifted by stories of courage and compassion
that emerged during those difficult times. It seemed no hand was
idle -- and certainly no heart was untouched.
But these cities and others have been most notable, I think,
for their courage and creativity in meeting longer-term
challenges.
When the community of South Gate in Los Angeles faced an
explosion of young kids -- many of them immigrant and at-risk in
overcrowded classrooms -- civic volunteers and local businesses
3
volunteered money, time and talent to turn the tide against drugs
and gangs.
The kids -- 15,000 of them -- got involved in marches,
poster and essay contests, assemblies, and anti-gang, anti-drug
pledges. Test scores improved. Attendance went from among the
lowest to the highest in the L.A. school district. And the drop-
out rate is now the lowest in the city.
The same vision for a better future has driven the city of
South St. Paul, as they deal with change and new challenges.
Rather than mourning the loss of a key industry, citizens began
to plan a public walkway and trail system on old industrial land
along the river.
Volunteers worked tirelessly at town meetings to convince
their neighbors that urban renewal means an improved city,
economic growth and new jobs. Stock certificates for
"Mississippi Miles" were sold for a dollar each, enlisting even
the kids.
And now, the center of South St. Paul is coming back to
life. One high school senior even told a local historian,
"I just have to thank you for giving me back my home town."
For forty years, the National Civic League has recognized
community excellence through these awards. Success stories like
these are a hopeful reminder, that the success of democracy
depends on the resilience and capacity of citizens for self-
governance, education, civic responsibility, and economic
development.
4
We single out all ten of these cities, not because they
claim to be the "best" cities in America -- I think they're too
smart or modest for that -- but because they represent what's
best about American cities.
Rather than looking for an outside solution or quick fix,
they're looking within for the answers -- and they're finding
them.
By recognizing and unleashing the power and potential of the
people themselves, they're proving that big cities can meet
enormous challenges -- and small towns can do big things.
So congratulations to you all. You've earned the admiration
of a nation. Because when people say, "It's never been done" --
you're doing it.
When they ask, "Why bother?" -- you're asking "Why not?"
And when they say, "You can't get there from here" -- you've
proved that you can.
[And now I'd like to present
]
# # #