Creating Sustainable Communities
In 2009, the Near Northside was selected by the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) of Greater Houston as one of two pilot sites for the Great Opportunities (GO) Neighborhoods program. The vision for GO Neighborhoods is to create truly sustainable communities, good places to live, do business, work and raise families.
The program was a remarkable success in the Near Northside. In 2010, the neighborhood published its first Quality of Life Agreement, which guided their community building work over the following five years. Residents organized into GO Teams based on their areas of interest and priority, and Avenue facilitated meetings and creative partnerships between institutions and organizations that helped to address old problems in new ways. The results were substantive.
In 2015, residents decided to review their progress against the plans outlined in 2010, analyze the data, and then enter into an updated Quality of Life Agreement to guide neighborhood planning and activity into the next five years. This QLA 2.0 is actively being pursued by residents and stakeholders to engage people, create change, and leverage investment in the Near Northside.