Our COO, Keevan D., was proud to partner and work with the 10th ward Alderman Office of Susan Sadlowski Garza for the 2017 Participatory Budget as apart of the "Breathing New Life on Torrence Ave" committee. The results are in and we are proud to share this announcement:
"The 10th Ward has successfully completed its second cycle of Participatory Budgeting. We have given community residents the opportunity to propose projects to be placed on a ballot, voted on, and then funded with one million dollars of our ‘Aldermanic Menu’ funding. Over the last six months community residents from all seven neighborhoods of the 10th Ward have met biweekly to plan capital improvement/ infrastructure projects.
Between November 13-22, 2017 constituents voted at multiple polling sites across the Ward and, for the first time, online. The results are as follows: 60% of our menu funding will be allocated to street resurfacing and sidewalks ($600,000), Breathing New Life on Torrence Ave (343 votes, $30,000), Light the Night (333 votes, $17,000), Baseball Field for George Washington High School (279 votes, $160,000), Exercise Stations along the Burnham Bike Path (217 votes, $85,000), and Commercial Ave Gateway Park (137 votes, $100,000). Implementation will begin in 2018. Congratulations 10th Ward and to our dedicated PB Community Representatives!"
The $30,000 going to the committee project "Breathing New Life on Torrence Ave" is a major win for GRACE and the South Deering community. South Deering has been a gang war zone for many years. There have been countless young Black and Latino men lost to gang violence. The "Breathing New Life on Torrence Ave" project will consist of us putting Trees 🌲 down Torrence Ave.
Trees are very important to our ecosystem and have ancient symbolic meaning. Trees symbolize a connection to our ancestors. A tree sprouts from a seed, grows and branches out, and then creates a new fruit that gives life to the next generation, to begin anew. Trees also symbolize permanence & longevity.
Upon announcement of the ballot results, Keevan D. stated, "If your from South Deering or the 10th Ward you'll know how deeply rooted our community residents are in this community. It is time to beautify South Deering and bring peace to an area that has been plagued by drugs, crime and gang violence for decades. It won't happen over night just like Trees 🌲 don't grow tall over night. It is a process and will take time but now is the time we start to "LIVE" in SouthDeering! I urge everybody to get involved with the alderman offices in their own communities. It's easy to sit around and complain about your areas problems, but to see a change calls for Action!" Our team at GRACE is looking forward to keeping everyone up to date with the development process #SayGrace !
