Why Organize?
Perhaps you have wondered why you should even bother to organize your neighborhood. Consider some of these thoughts:
You get to know your neighbors again!
You find out who needs assistance in your neighborhood such as a senior citizen-you get volunteers to help with things like painting their house, cleaning up their yard, transportation to the doctor- and it feels good to do these type of activities.
By being involved in your neighborhood and community - you show that you care about others and you are setting an example for your own children to follow.
You can help maintain your property values by working on problem homes with the owner and/or a code inspector.
You work on safety issues as a group
Groups work better - particularly when working on issues like the need for sewers or streetlights which can benefit everyone in the neighborhood.
A neighborhood that does not have an organized association is much more likely to have problems with drug houses, gangs and prostitution. The bad element knows where to go and where no one is watching them.
If you are organized you are much more likely to get a major problem like storm sewers, street lights- projects that benefit a neighborhood - passed through city hall. When an organized neighborhood group shows up atCity Hall - the City Council will listen.
If you are organized, you're "tuned in".
Organized groups are notified of hearings at city hall, and other issues such as zoning changes that could affect your neighborhood.
Depending on the income of your neighborhood - your neighborhood could qualify for grants that will help you build the "capacity" of your organization or help those less fortunate fix up their homes to make them more livable.
If you have an organized neighborhood association - you may be able to join with other neighborhood groups to lobby for specific issues that affect neighborhoods.
Also, you have the opportunity to meet with other neighborhoods in the Northland and the Metro Kansas City area to learn how they handle specific problems - how they get the job done!
There will never be enough resources available to fix our streets, plant trees, clean up our parks, tear down vacant abandoned houses, fight crime, drugs, gangs etc. but a group of volunteers who care about their community can move a mountain.
