McCarter Switching Station by Vivian Cox Fraser

8/19/2019 McCarter Switching Station by Vivian Cox Fraser

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McCarter Switching Station

A SPECIAL PRESENTATION FOR:

National Environmental Justice Conference and Training Program

March 9, 2016

Building an Empowered Community


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Urban League of Essex County

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The Mission of O r Mo!e"en#

The Urban League of Essex County is a non-pro t community-basedorganization whose mission is to assist African Americans and other

disadvantaged urban residents in the achievement of socia andeconomic se f-su!ciency"


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The $r%an Lea& e of Esse' Co n#( )$LEC*

ULEC’s strategy is geared specifcallytowards serving the Essex Countycommunity.Our goals are:

Economic sel su!ciency or adults"ocial and educational e#uality oryouth"a e communities andneigh$orhoods

Civic involvement and responsi$ility%acial inclusion

Founded in 1917

Ser ice !rea" Essex County# $ew%ersey

&' fu(()ti*e# 2& +art)ti*ee*+(oyees

CE," -i ian Cox Fraser

1' .oard *e*bers

/ota( o+erating budget of0 #'''#'''


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Pro&ra"s an+ Ser!ices

Social and EconmicSelf-Sufficiency

Employment andCareer

Counseling & JobPlacement

Financial Literacy &Foreclosure ssistance

Teen !entoring"

Tutoring & CollegePrep

Early C#ild#ood& fter Sc#oolPrograms

Community$evelopment

%LEC accomplis#es its mission t#roug# its programs and advocacy efforts

Social Enterprise

and Job Creation


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&

I" ac#f - Pro&ra"s.


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Foc s on Transfor"in& a Co"" ni#(

T 'ETNE(')*+ )++$

Fairmount is one of t#e most distressed

neig#bor#oods in Ne,ar and is amicrocosm of t#e c#allenges in t#e Cityand ot#er urban areas.

//"000 esidents1"200 C#ildren


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The Fair"o n# S#ra#e&ic P-an

T#e Plan identified five ma3or goals4/. Promoting Jobs and Economic

+pportunity52. Strengt#ening t#e Community"

Neig#bor#ood and Families56. educing Crime and (mproving PublicSafety5

1. (mproving Educational +pportunities5 and7. En#ancing 8uality of Life t#roug# Land

%se and ecreation+ver /"000 residents participated

in t#e development of t#eFairmount Strategic Plan


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To &h Cha--en&es in Fair"o n#

48% o children in&airmount live in poverty'early 70% o all childrenlive in a single parenthousehold

23.9% housing vacancyrate is nearly twice as high as the national average o().(*+ighest estimatedpercentage o su$prime

loans and total mortgages inoreclosure with almost 50

for every 1,000 owneroccupied units going into

oreclosureUnemployment is 27.9%


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Chi-+ren of Fair"o n#

Compared to other children in the city and state, the averagechild in &airmount is more li-ely to – live in poverty – experience or witness violence and crime – live in a one parent home – live in su$standard housing and wal- past a$andoned

homes on the way to school – not have a clean, sa e, environment in which to play

/nd less li-ely to – read or write at grade level –

have health insurance – pass state assessment tests in language arts,mathematics, and science

– have access to 0(st century technology at home – $e prepared or college and career.


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Land Use Impacts the Quality of Life in Fairmount


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/o #his Pro ec# I" ac#s Fair"o n#Economic Impact

9e ,ant to ensure all options and alternatives are considered because t#is pro3ect forever ta es avaluable parcel out of potential use to create 3obs and economic benefit to t#is neig#bor#ood.Estimated economic cost e:ceeds ; poverty" foreclosures"abandonment" disorder" and t#is ,ill ma e our ,or to improve Fairmount impossible. T#e impacton an already depressed community is far different t#an placement in a more stable neig#bor#ood.

Ur an Design Impact

T#is parcel is t#e gate,ay into t#e neig#bor#ood on a ma3or commercial corridor of a residentialcommunity. T#e pro3ect is large and


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Amplifying Community Voices through Tangible “Wins”

#airmount$s younger residents protest thedeve opment of the switching station

Longest ?oning *oard trial in t#e #istory

of t#e City of Ne,ar " @ #earings.+ver /7 e:pert ,itnesses


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NIM 3 4 I#5s No# Persona-

A


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Co"" ni#( enefi# A&ree"en#

epositioned and slig#tly smaller footprintEconomic Feasibility studyNe, $esign to ddress Safety Concerns;7 !il for a Ne, Community Center 6.7 cres of land to developNe, Pedestrian Lig#ting in FairmountNe, 'reenspace and ParC#anges in Traffic Patterns to Promote Pedestrian Safety


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C-osin& Tho &h#s

Having !our "wn #lan and $esidents Driving the #lan gives your voice more credi ility%ot &ust a community saying '%ot In my Bac( !ard)

*ccounta ility and Integrity + Helped them to Believe they could Change their%eigh orhood

Local #olitics and Elections

,eeping your Coalition together

-unicipalities with deficits and spending challenges

Deep #oc(ets and Long $each

,nowing How to Fight and .hen to /top Fighting

*dvocacy vs0 Influence

Don1t wait for someone else to do it0 %o one is coming on a white horse0

Documents

McCarter Switching Station by Vivian Cox Fraser