The Hill street project began in March of 1996. Our research team was looking for a block that had members who identified themselves as interested in working together to improve conditions on their block and/or be interested in assuming a leadership role. 5 out of 16 respondents (31%) said they would be interested in assuming a leadership role and 11 out of 16 (69%) were interested in working together. Compared to other blocks we studied, this was a relatively high number for both categories.

Hill street has other elements which made it attractive for some community development/intervention. It is a relatively low income street which appeared could use resources. There were several children who were often found playing in the street. At the end of the block, however, is a vacant lot which appeared ideal to turn into a mini playground for the children. Finally, there is a building at one end of the street which has gang related graffiti on its side facing the street. We thought that cleaning this up might be a project of interest to the residents.

The approach that we took with this block was one of self-help or community autonomy. The challenge we had was to find an initial project that would be valued and facilitated by the residents. The project we found was through a collaboration with an organization called Food movers.

Food Movers is an organization which trains volunteers to rescue perishable foods from grocery stores and then deliver them to various shelters. However, they also had a program in which volunteers from neighborhoods could rescue the food and distribute it to neighborhood residents. Given that Hill street residents were low income and expressed a desire to improve their block’s conditions, we felt that this could be an ideal project for initializing community development.

The first step was to contact those who showed interest in leadership and working together. Through the help of a community social worker, we identified a person who was already taking on a leadership role for the block. We contacted her by going to her house in person and approached her with our idea. Again, for the purpose of autonomy, we wanted to know if this project would be of interest to her as a leader and of interest to the residents. She expressed interest in assuming a leadership role by acting as a contact person and an organizer for Hill street.

The next step was to flyer the street detailing the project. We spoke to those who were home at the time to determine interest and recruit volunteers. Food Movers required at least 4 volunteers from the block. This turned to be more of a challenge than originally thought. Although we had several people who showed an interest in the project when we went door to door, it proved difficult to get everyone’s schedules to coincide in order to be trained. After approximately 6 weeks, Food Movers, the four block volunteers, and myself met at the Network Center to be trained. The Network center was convenient as it was located across the street from Hill.

The volunteers would sort through food at a grocery store and deliver it to their neighborhood every two weeks. We were allowed to use the Network Center for the distribution. Residents on the street were contacted by the leader as to the pick up times. The amount of food distributed ranged from 100lbs up to 1000lbs. After a few distributions, an average of approximately 10 households would show up to pick up the food. This arrangement lasted until early September, when there was a breakdown of the system. Food Movers eventually had to cancel due to low turn out of residents and volunteers. The final distribution had only one resident who attended.

I have speculated several reasons as to why this arrangement did not continue. The first is that our designated leader was 8 months pregnant and wished to step down as leader for a period of time. We were unable to find someone who was willing to take her place. A few weeks after this occurred, one of our core volunteers moved out of the community. Within these few weeks, we also lost our distribution site when the building they used was sold. Although we found a new location nearby at a church, I believe the combination of theses events in a relatively short time period caused confusion among the residents who had previously attended.

I believe the inherit aspects of the block and Food Movers also contributed to the termination of this project. Food Movers required at least four active volunteers and a van to be eligible to participate. There was only one household which owned a van. In addition, four active volunteers is difficult to maintain on a block this size. Food Movers usually trains volunteers from neighborhoods consisting of several blocks. If people are sick or move away from the community, there are several others who can readily take their place. Although we discussed adding on other blocks to obtain a larger volunteer base, we were primarily interested in community development on a single block, preferably one that we have already surveyed.

Although this particular project ended, by no means would I deem it to have been a failure. It lasted successfully for several months. Clearly the residents were interested in it. An average of 10 households participating is a significant number. The process itself acted as a forum for residents to meet each other for the first time and act as a community. Indeed, neighbors reported that this project acted as a catalyst for people to get to know each other and become "friends". Additionally, the distribution site became a place where residents began exploring future projects such as creating a park in the vacant lot and cleaning up the graffiti on the building. Whether or not these projects come to fruition, several goals were attained. From beginning to end, the block was autonomous in the process of organization and obtaining resources. The residents successfully got to know each other better and addressed common interests and future goals. Finally, this effort demonstrated that research can have a productive, active role when it applies what it has found. Due to the fact that our research team compiled data which demonstrated a willingness of a block to work together, we were able to act as a catalyst in getting them to organize.

The implications of this project are that research has a place in theory and in practice. Hill street was an initial unit of analysis to study how these two aspects are related. It would be interesting to do a longitudinal study on Hill street or another block to determine if research can lead to intervention which can in turn lead to further research to determine an increased sense of community.