Mid-North Quality of Life Plan Energizes Neighbors of The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis
After a year and half of planning and thousands of volunteer hours, the Mid-North Quality of Life Plan received a resounding applause from a crowd of more than 300 people when it was unveiled Monday, January 23rd, 2012, at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.
“We envision our community to be empowered and self-actualized to improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods,” said Darrieux Peterson, resident and chair of the Youth Engagement Action Team.
The representatives of the various planning teams shared several objectives including:
• Leveraging the Fall Creek Waterway for economic development and recreational opportunities
• Developing a welcoming brand identity for the area neighborhoods
• Working with The Children’s Museum and other area stakeholders on development of green space
• Enhancing or developing cradle-to-career educational programming
• Improving the housing inventory
• Building effective partnerships between residents and law enforcement to increase public safety
• Enhancing opportunities to connect youth and seniors with enrichment programming and health and wellness resources.
“The museum has been a partner and collaborator for supporting neighborhood revitalization for many years,” said Anthony Bridgeman, director of community initiatives, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. “We will continue these efforts by supporting the quality of life plan implementation, components of which are the redevelopment of the former Winona Hospital site and cradle-to-career family learning initiatives.”
The Mid-North Quality of Life Plan encompasses an area consisting of six neighborhoods bounded by 38th Street (North), 21st Street (South), I-65 (West) and Meridian Street/Fall Creek Parkway (East). There are over 4,700 households and just over 10,000 residents who live within this area. The plan was developed by the residents and stakeholders of the Mid-North area, represents the vision of the neighborhoods and focuses on areas vital to the residents’ quality of life.
The Local Initiatives Support Corporation-Indianapolis (LISC) has sponsored the development of quality of life plans in six other Indianapolis neighborhoods resulting in substantial improvements in the quality of life experienced by the stakeholders in those areas. Several area organizations, including The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, Citizen’s Energy Group, Ivy Tech Community College, Mapleton-Fall Creek Development Corporation, KI-Eco Center, Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Mid-North Shepard’s Center, IU Health, and Near North Development Corporation are helping to support the planning effort. The Children’s Museum provides full-time staff to support the planning and implementation of the Quality of Life Plan.
For more information about the Mid-North Quality of Life Plan, please visit www.midnorthplan.org. For LISC and other area Quality of Life Plans, please visit www.liscindianapolis.org.
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