The
Beech & Milton Neighborhood Coalition had its beginnings at small
neighborhood barbecues where any neighbor who happened past was invited to
share a meal and good conversation.
Through those semi-spontaneous community gatherings, neighbors began to
rally around the potential of transforming our neighborhood from one plagued by
drug dealing and prostitution to a safe, family-friendly community.
With
support from the City of Portland’s Office of Neighborhood Involvement,
neighbors formed a Neighborhood Watch, growing to 100 households strong. Neighbors committed to calling the police
when we saw suspicious activity. We
worked closely with the Portland Police Department’s Prostitution Coordination
Team to target the pimps and sex buyers who prowled our streets. We worked with our Neighborhood Response Team
and other Portland Police Officers to shut down a drug house, and we played a
role in the closing of a seedy motel that was fueling the crime in our
neighborhood.
With our
Neighborhood Watch going strong, neighbors were looking for the next steps to
take back our neighborhood. That next
step was the formation of a Foot Patrol.
One evening each month, neighbors come together to walk our
streets. Through a non-confrontational,
positive presence, we show that we care about our community. While on foot patrol, we also submit photos to
the City of graffiti or other vandalism, and we contact the police if we
witness suspicious activity. But, our
primary task is just to smile and say “hello” to everyone we pass! On our first foot patrol, people we passed by
applauded and cheered. It was easy to
see the immediate impact of simply walking through our neighborhood!
After a
year of barbecues, Neighborhood Watch, and Foot Patrols, we had successfully
transformed the way everyone who lived here felt about our neighborhood, but we
were acutely aware that we were still dealing with crime and that our
neighborhood still looked inviting to that element. We turned our focus to physical
transformations that would not only continue to bring us together as a
community but would also show the rest of the world we are committed, caring,
community-minded people and that there is no place for crime on our streets. It was at this point that the Beech &
Milton Neighborhood Coalition took form!
Our
first step in this endeavor was creating unique, hand-painted “Slow Down for
Children” signs to address cars speeding through our streets. Next, we identified a vacant lot as a problem
spot and eye sore in our neighborhood and collectively dreamed about what we
would like to see in its place. The
Beech Street Community garden was born!
The Garden was developed in partnership with the Urban Farm
Collective. It is ran by neighbors with
a model of sharing the work and sharing the bounty!
In the
Spring of 2014, the Beech & Milton Neighborhood Coalition undertook two
intersection repairs (street paintings) through City Repair Project’s Village
Building Convergence. The design of the
two paintings was the result of a highly collaborative, multi-iterative
process. Neighbors talked about the
history of our neighborhood, what it has meant to us over time, the heart of
the neighborhood now, and our dreams for the future. The Coalition’s design committee captured
those ideas and turned them into the beautiful pieces of art you see on the
street today. They have transformed two
troubled intersections into community gathering spaces and sources of pride. Other committees of neighbors that made these
projects possible include our fundraising committee (annual rummage and plant
sale), door-to-door committee (getting the word out), and party committee (very
important).
Since
the days of those initial barbecues, we have shifted from individual families
living in isolation to a supportive community of neighbors. We celebrate birthdays together and take care
of animals and homes when neighbors are out of town. We grow food together, and our children play
together. We lend tools to one another,
and the last-minute missing supper ingredient is only a phone call away. At Christmas time, neighbors undertook
“25-Days of Community Giving” with one or two neighbors committed to doing some
good deed for the neighborhood on their assigned day. This past summer, we had a big block party
between our two newly beautified intersections, and we intend to make it an
annual event.
We also
continue to work with the City and the Portland Police Department to keep crime
away from our neighborhood. The
Neighborhood Watch and Foot Patrols continue to be active, and neighbors now
speak at the City’s Sex Buyer’s Accountability Program, an educational
diversion program for first time offenders, about the impact that prostitution
has on a community.
As we
reflect back on the last few years, it is remarkable to see how far we have
come. But, we are not done. Neighbors will continue to dream and continue
to think big thoughts for what is possible for our little corner of the world. Through collaboration with our many community
partners, the dedication of those who live here, and many many more barbecues,
we will continue to work toward our ever-evolving vision for our neighborhood!
