2007 MetLife Awards - Charlotte Mecklenburg Housing Partnership & Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department
Date Published: 03/31/2008
Author: Karin Anderson
Publisher: LISC
Just north of the city center of Charlotte, North Carolina is the neighborhood of Druid Hills, a community that struggled with drug activity and drug-related violence up until a few years ago. To address the persistent crime problems in the neighborhood and unite the community to take action to reclaim their neighborhood, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Housing Partnership, a non-profit housing development and finance corporation, and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department collaborated as part of a Neighborhood Action Team which addressed a variety of problems including crime, poor housing stock, and poor neighborhood infrastructure. The Team involves city departments including Police, Neighborhood Development and Engineering, as well as non-profit service providers and neighborhood residents. Team members successfully coordinated their activities on what started as separate projects and leveraged each other’s resources to work together toward the revitalization goals. Police officers were heavily involved in developing the communications networks that facilitated the partnerships among the involved agencies as well as with the community. Results include a measurable drop in crime, reduced blight, improved traffic patterns, new affordable housing and greater economic vibrancy in Druid Hills.
Topics: Economic Development & Safety, --Community Safety
Type: Case study / model practice