Price Hill Will

Programs: Price hill will's real estate development program is designed to stabilize the housing market in price hill, provide support and incentives to all parts of the housing market, and to create new confidence in the market. Existing homeowners will feel comfortable with their investments and want to stay in the neighborhood, renters will feel connected to the community and want to become homeowners, and new buyers will be attracted to the neighborhood. A central part of the real estate development work involves the buy-improve-demolish-sell strategy where distressed, foreclosed or vacant homes are purchased, rehabilitated or razed and sold to new homeowners. Additionally, other strategies are designed to stabilize and improve housing conditions in price hill including reduction of blight, promotion of home ownership, advocacy for change in public policy, partnerships with other organizations, and increasing focus on improvements to the business district. In 2016, price hill will purchased 5 homes, rehabilitated 4, sold 6 to homeowner occupants, began land contracts for 2 homesteading homes, and purchased 2 vacant lots for future development. Price hill will is also a community partner with the hamilton county land reutilization corporation (the land bank) in vetting prospective vacant lot acquisitions in price hill, ensuring that land is acquired by credible and capable individuals for redevelopment.

price hill will's civic engagement program is designed to actively involve community members in the revitalization of their neighborhood. The organization's founding members recognized that physical revitalization of the neighborhood would not be enough to achieve sustainable change - community members and neighborhood institutions needed strong communication networks to access ways to improve and maintain the quality of life they hope to experience daily. Over 2,000 surveys were completed in the organization's original planning process to determine what the community valued most about price hill. Themes from those surveys helped to form committees that residents were encouraged to join. Those committees are known as community action teams or cats. Some of these groups continue as a cat while other resident-led groups have chosen to move away from that particular title. In the spring of 2014, price hill will contracted with the community building institute to begin the price hill plan. The original community planning process that resulted in the formation of price hill will and the cats was at that point some 12 years old. It was felt that some of the cats had drifted a long way from their original goals, while others had gone out of existence. It was time for another strong round of community thought and input. The initial, broad engagement phase of the planning process involved some 700 residents, through public meetings, work sessions, and online surveys. Planners from price hill will, community building institute, and the city of cincinnati edited all that citizen input into seven topic areas: housing; arts & culture; community; economic development; health and safety; schools, youth, and teens; and transportation. Citizens formed work groups around each of these areas, and further developed the goals from the broader outreach. Once the goals were in place, each group developed a few action items, and suggested partners to help achieve those goals. This process took through the rest of 2014. In early 2015, the price hill plan was approved by all the community councils, the city planning commission, and city council. Implementation teams have been formed, some look like the old cats, but with a new focus and charge from the community, most look quite different. Community leadership engaged through the main 2014 planning process, and working with the director of community engagement and over-arching steering committee, have found stronger focus, drawn from the plan goals and objectives. The organization expanded its community engagement programming in 2013 to include a sustainability program, which continued and expanded throughout 2016. It focuses on three key components: a diverse network of community gardens, promotion of sustainable practices such as recycling, home-based gardening support/consultation and nutrition education. Either through direct support by staff or by strategic partnerships, price hill will has increased community access to the knowledge and resources needed to take part in healthy and environmentally-sustainable living. Over 400 volunteers participated in topic and/or project-based committees supported by staff including a committee that, for the first time in organizational history, planned and raised funds for a major public space development project in the business district. Again working closely with the community - in this case the east price hill business alliance - funding was secured from the city and molina healthcare to complete nearly $300,000 worth of renovation to the olden recreation area (commonly called the "tot lot"), in the very center of the warsaw business district, turning a crime hotspot into a true asset and highlight to the business district. One year later, in 2016, the same group was able to secure a further $106,000, to build a structure in the park that will simultaneously enhance it as a landmark, and mitigate the visual presence of the adjoining duke energy substation. Examples of the work being done by these groups include organizing and sponsoring free community events and festivals, creating and managing several community gardens, installing public art, and organizing crime prevention strategies. All programming takes place within east, west, and/or lower price hill, though some resident-led initiatives are aligned with city and state level advocacy efforts affecting community development in price hill (i. E. Housing). In 2011, price hill will began a program called mycincinnati (music for youth in cincinnati), which is a free after-school music program that offers students in price hill the opportunity to study an instrument and play in an orchestra. The mission of mycincinnati is to use classical music as a tool for youth development and community engagement by providing urban children with access to free, intense, high-quality musical instruction. Mycincinnati students are engaged in intensive music programming for 2 hours every weekday after school. Students participate in group and private lessons, orchestra rehearsals, bucket drumming, musicianship classes, and give frequent performances throughout cincinnati. The program started with 11 students in 2011, and currently has 100 students enrolled. In 2015 price hill will received funding to establish a 2 year pilot program focusing on creative placemaking. In the first year, phw leveraged $26,000 in funding, created 16 partnerships, facilitated 6 resident-led projects, hosted 23 events and invested $5,000 in local artists. Highlights include completing of a mosaic wall in the heart of the business district that had gone unfinished for two decades, hosting large cultural events, creating an arts council on neighborhood residents and turning our historic firehouse into a creative community hub. In year two, the program partnered with arts organizations and residents to build a playable percussion park in the community, creating five murals in the business district, and starting a free adult community orchestra for price hill residents that rehearses once a week.

price hill will's economic development program provides business association staff support, grant writing technical assistance for community councils/business associations, help with planning & design projects, matching grants (when funds are available), and referrals to small business development incentive programs. In 2011, phw led the process of creating a corridor plan for the incline district of east price hill, which was formally adopted by the city of cincinnati in 2012. The organization was also successful in securing a community entertainment district designation in that same year. Both accomplishments have led to major private and public sector investments within the planning area that initiated in 2013, including extensive renovation of a recreation facility (ongoing through 2014), dedication of department of transportation and engineering resources for streetscape design along the district's main corridor and a brand new performing arts theatre (construction ongoing in 2014, with a completion target of mid-2015). The aforementioned olden renovation provides a current highlight and focus to the warsaw business district, while price hill will staff works closely with community groups to organize business and property owners in the business district, with the goal of creating an ambitious, workable plan for the warsaw corridor. In lower price hill, price hill will's executive director, real estate, and economic development staff in 2015 began working closely with several groups from both inside and outside the community to develop revitalization plans that both draw upon the expertise of outside commercial players and are informed by the wishes of the community itself. Phw and staff from other organizations will have this planning work formalized into a single document, and will shepherd it through the city's plan approval process. City approval allows city planning staff and commission to acknowledge neighborhood desires when making and recommending decisions. Phw is now recognized as a key partner in business district development by the price hill community and the city of cincinnati. Price hill will is actively working through media awareness and promotional efforts to improve the image of the neighborhood throughout the area. The goal is to enhance people's awareness of the positive aspects of price hill in order to draw more people to buy homes, start businesses and shop in the neighborhood. Price hill will utilizes social media, earned media (the press), paid advertising, websites and door to door marketing to inform residents of events and news of the community. Achievements include assisting the east price hill business alliance in developing an effective membership-based organization, helping residents to secure city investment in a public square and implementing the beginning phases of two city-approved master design plans.