1

Vision for the future

MAYOR JONES: BUILDING THE BEST RICHMOND

Realities of the past

Low rates of homeownership/limited

assets

Extensive blight & physical decay

Poor educational outcomes

High unemployment

Concentrated poverty

Violent crime

Disinvestment

Unique, Healthy &

Inclusive Neighborhoods

Improved opportunities for

ownership

Mixed-income, mixed-

tenure

Significant public and

private

investment

Great schools

Enhanced community

services & amenities

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

Impact on Poverty Reduction

Impact on Public Education

Impact on Community Quality-of-Life

Long-term Fiscal Impact

2

3

Schools as Revitalization Tool

“From the perspective of community development groups,

education is the next frontier…

They could fix housing, revive shopping areas, raise the

level of public services, even reduce crime.

But the schools: probably the biggest factor in families’

decision about whether to remain or flee.”

-Paul Grogan and Tom Procio, Comeback Cities

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

4

Why New School Matters

Serve as anchors for an economically diverse population

School construction must be coordinated with planning and

construction of homeownership units and emerging redevelopment

areas within city

Schools as critical anchor for a community of mixed-income, mixed-

tenure housing units, open space, and other amenities

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

5

Schools as a Revitalization Tool –What the Case Studies Suggest

Creating an excellent public school can be a powerful tool to attract families to the neighborhood or to persuade those already living in the neighborhood to stay

For middle-income families to move to the neighborhood to be near the school, they need to believe that the school will provide a better education for their children than other available alternatives

A good school can contribute to revitalization by helping to foster neighborhood pride and a “culture of excellence,” thereby improving the long-term outlook for local children and their families

School as anchor; not adjunct

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

6

Schools as Pivotal Revitalization Tool – Best Practices: Atlanta

Drew Charter School, pre-K through 8

Began operations in 2000 as part of a nearly $200 million transformation of East Lake

Meadows (now the Villages of East Lake) public housing complex and surrounding area

(including shopping, child development center, golf course)

Went from one of the lowest achieving schools in the city to one of the highest performing

elementary and middle schools in Georgia

Product of a unique development partnership between the Atlanta Housing Authority and Tom

Cousins, CEO of Cousins Properties and owner of the nearby East Lake Golf Club

It’s success partly inspired the founding of Purpose Built Communities, a non-profit

spearheaded by Cousins and Warren Buffett to help export the Villages of East Lake model

Visited by Richmond community leaders in 2011

Centennial Place STEAM School, K-5

Established in 1998 as part of the transformation of the Techwood and Clark Howell public

housing developments into roughly 900 mixed-income residences

Part of the Atlanta Public Schools system but inspired by revitalization partnership among the

housing authority, McCormack Baron Salazar and the Integral Group, an MBE developer

Replaced the “rock bottom” Fowler Elementary but now ranks among the top schools in

Atlanta

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

7

Understanding schools’ role in the shaping of new Richmond neighborhoods over next 10-20 years

Planning for the Future

NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION AS ESSENTIAL

COMPONENT OF IMPROVING EDUCATION

The prevalence of extreme levels of concentrated poverty make

achieving positive educational outcomes more challenging.

Individual child: low-income children often exposed to less

language-rich environment, inhibiting learning, while also

experiencing heightened stress and greater risks of adverse

experiences triggering developmental delays.

Classroom: more challenging to teach successfully in

classrooms with higher proportion of children experiencing

consequences of poverty.

Systemic: more difficult to attract, develop and retain high-

quality teachers and principals in more challenging

environments.

8

HOW NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION SUPPORTS

STRONGER EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES

Stronger employment in the neighborhoods stabilizes parents and

families allowing kids to be less stressed and more able to focus on

learning in school

Stronger comprehensive support services for families in poverty

helps reduce the number of children who fall into crisis as well as

better addressing those crises when they arrive

Deconcentration of poverty: some families in the neighborhood

will take the opportunity to move to a different neighborhood, at

the same time more households with middle-range incomes come

into the neighborhood. If successful this will lead to a healthier

socioeconomic mix in schools now overwhelmed by economic

disadvantage.

9

CHOICE NEIGHBORHOOD INITIATIVE: OPPORTUNITY FOR

COLLABORATION

Aim is comprehensive redevelopment of Creighton Court into

mixed-income community, ultimately involving development

of 1200-1400 units, with one-for-one replacement of 504

public housing equivalent units. HUD Choice Initiative is $30

million grant to support project. Three key components:

Housing plan

Neighborhood plan

People plan to provide wrap-around, household-based

support to Creighton residents before, during and after

transformation process.

Education is a critical and required component of People

Plan. City of Richmond, RPS, and RRHA will be working

together on finalizing People Plan.

10

11

Summary

Comprehensive neighborhood revitalization in Richmond is doable

Develop strategies is for comprehensive community revitalization based on Mayor’s goal of targeted, strategic investments into “people and place” (e.g., Dove and East End)

Richmond achieves long-term economic viability by investing in

communities where our residents live, work, and play

Key governmental sectors, philanthropic and business communities

must be involved if this model of comprehensive neighborhood

revitalization is to be successful and sustainable

COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION

Thank You!

Q&A