PACT Newsletter: Ten Years of Community Building
Message from Autumn Glover, Interim President
Happy New Year! January brings a renewed sense of energy, a rebirth of the spirit and reconnecting to our priorities. At PACT, we are proud to share that 2020 marks our 10-year anniversary! This year, as we refocus PACT’s work and projects, we continue our drive and commitment to the mission and vision that underscores PACT’s purpose.
While PACT has reimagined its structure and organization, our work remains the same – to create a healthy, financially and environmentally sustainable community where residents have access to safe and affordable housing, quality healthcare and education, and employment opportunities on the Near East Side.
Our signature programs are priorities for us in 2020. Among these are the Exterior Home Repair Program, The Ohio State University Employee Homeownership Incentive, Near East Side Neighborhood Leadership Academy and the Health Sciences Academies.
As we celebrate 10 years of building community in the PACT geography, we look forward to our work together in 2020.
Read more about our priorities and some of the recent activities taking place in the PACT geography.
Autumn Glover
Home Exterior Home Repair Efforts Continue
Before
After
The Exterior Home Repair Program, launched in 2014, continues to positively impact our community. To date, PACT’s initiative to provide exterior home improvements has benefitted 31 homes within the PACT geography. We are currently preparing for 2020 exterior home repairs – and hope to grow this program over the next five years.
Typical repairs have included roof repairs, new windows, siding, gutters and downspouts, front porch and/or deck repairs. Residents help to inform the scope of work for each renovation. PACT utilizes experts for repair consultation and trained technicians who meet individually with each homeowner to establish an individualized work plan. PACT oversees the repair project and ensures repairs are completed properly and within the scope of work. The average value of each repair is up to $10,000. This program has been made possible with generous funding from Ohio State, United Way of Central Ohio, Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing and Fifth Third Bank.
Homeownership Options Support PACT Housing Market
The Near East Side Homeownership Incentive Program is designed to help increase homeownership in the PACT geography. The incentive offers financial assistance to employees of The Ohio State University (including Wexner Medical Center) interested in calling the Near East Side home. The home must be located within the PACT geography boundaries, including Hamilton Avenue to the west, East Broad Street to the south, Woodland Avenue to the east and Leonard Avenue to the north.
Ohio State faculty and staff with at least a 50 percent full-time equivalency are eligible for the funding, as long as the purchased house or condominium is their primary residence. Participants receive an $8,000, no-interest forgivable loan, which can be used for a down payment, closing costs or reducing the principal amount of a home.
Employees must reside in the residence for at least five years, otherwise a prorated balance is due to Ohio State. Since it has launched more than 20 faculty and staff have taken advantage of the opportunity to call this beautiful community home!
Employees interested in learning more can download the application and contact PACT, 614-247-8037.
Leadership Academy Supports Near East Side
PACT and United Way of Central Ohio are pleased to introduce a new group of Near East Side Neighborhood Leadership Academy (NESNLA) participates to the community. The Academy is an initiative that provides a curriculum to develop neighborhood leadership. The 40-hour curriculum prepares neighborhood champions to step into leadership roles in community improvement initiatives and provides guidance in working with and through local governance to create grassroots solutions to community challenges. Several projects that support the community in a number of ways, including the NLA Food Rescue Project, have been initiated by NLA members.
In December, Ohio State’s President, Dr. Michael Drake, and his wife, Brenda Drake hosted NESNLA alumni and the incoming class of the Academy to celebrate the great work and accomplishments of these leaders.
Congratulations to Class III who will begin their journey in 2020!
Barbara Clark
Camille Doty
Martina Grundy
Tashuana Hardy
Shavonne Jones
Jenae Parker
Tracy Ross
Ric Sarpong
Pamela Shields
David Tweet
Russell Underwood
Jerry Valentine
PACT Welcomes Graduate Students
PACT is proud to support students and help them gain real life workforce experiences. This year, we welcomed two graduate assistants who will support PACT in our community development efforts.
Randy Johnnicon will graduate in 2021 from the Master of Health Administration program at The Ohio State University. He originates from Atlanta, GA where he earned his undergraduate degree from Georgia Southern University. Randy has skills in planning, analytics, and finance.
Gerika Logan is a second-year Master of City and Regional Planning student at The Ohio State University. She earned her undergraduate degree from Ohio University where she studied Organizational Communication and Geography. Since 2017, she has served in the Ohio Army National Guard as a Culinary Specialist. She currently volunteers with Columbus Landmarks.
Calling All Artists
PACT is launching a public art project and seeking artists
PACT is launching a public art project and seeking artists to help celebrate the rich history of Columbus’ Near East Side with a spotlight on historic Bronzeville. The public art project centers around six bike rack installations throughout the PACT geography. Each bike rack will display six custom plate artwork pieces inspired by historic locations in the neighborhood.
Applications from individual artists will be accepted through March 6, 2020. Artists will choose from a selection of locations to influence their creative piece(s). All pieces must conform and present nicely in the 15.5” diameter plate and must be digitally formatted. Artists will retain the rights to all pieces. Artists will license their pieces to PACT for purposes of the bike rack and related marketing and promotional efforts. A total of six pieces will be selected.
Selected artists will receive a cash award of $500 for the selected installation. Artists are able to enter no more than 2 pieces.
Again, applications are due by March 6, 2020. Artists interested in participating eastpact.org. Questions can be directed to info@eastpact.org.
Health Sciences Academies
PACT continues our commitment to the Health Sciences Academies. The Health Sciences Academies (HSAs), is a partnership between Columbus City Schools and PACT is to produce successful, positive outcomes for the children and families of the Near East Side of Columbus and to transform the PACT geography into an education destination of choice.
East High School, Champion Middle School, Beatty Park, Eastgate, Ohio Avenue, and Trevitt elementary schools have all benefited from our collaboration with The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center to provide hands-on educational experiences in the areas of health sciences.
Creating experiences for youth that open their eyes to possibilities
The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, under the leadership of Dr. Darrell Mason Gray II, and through its partnership with PACT and Columbus City Schools is exposing students in the Health Sciences Academies to medicine as a way to reduce barriers for black children who may want to pursue medicine. The mentorship, visibility of medical staff from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in the schools and their interaction with students is making a difference.
Listen to a recent StoryCorpS interview conducted by Dr. Gray and Tei Street, director of education for The Ohio State University.
Preserving the Unique History of PACTs Rich Housing Stock
Honoring our heritage and building our future is at the heart of what we do. In partnership with Ohio State student leaders, PACT is launching a Home Lineage Project focused on gathering stories, data and lineage information to help highlight the rich history of housing stock in our community. Homeowners will have the opportunity to learn how to gather data and capture information about their property through this project. The history of the homes in our community underline our historic past and build a sense of community among residents. A complete guide with instructions on how to capture photos, research your home and more is available EASTPACT.org.
Unique Collaboration to Bring Apartments to the Near East Side
48 Parkwood, Ltd. is working to revive an important landmark and area just across the street from Columbus East High School. 48 Parkwood has been listed on the Columbus Landmarks Foundation list of most endangered sites. The effort is a collaboration between the Ohio Baptist General Convention (OBGC), a long-time historic religious organization; an investor from a long-time prominent Near East Side family, Otto Beatty III; and a local developer who has a passion for the redevelopment of community assets and has a proven track record of Near East Side renovations, Kelley Companies.
“We are excited to bring additional new and quality housing to an emerging area of the Near East Side,” said Otto Beatty III. “I believe the students, faculty, and alumni of East High School will be inspired by new development and investment adjacent to the high school. Beatty underscored, “I am especially proud to be a part of preserving a truly historical property in the neighborhood that has been so important to my family for past 80 years.”
The development fits in well with Columbus City Schools investment in the school building, the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s new Martin Luther King Library, and the individual residential investments of families in the area:
• 48 Parkwood, using state and federal historic tax credits, will have nine, one-bedroom apartments inside the historic structure.
• The non-historic buildings at 32 and 40 Parkwood will be demolished and replaced with a brand new 3-story building, bringing 27 apartment residences.
“We looked at all the options and determined that the only pathway to saving the historic 48 Parkwood building would be to obtain state and federal tax credits and to replace the adjacent two non-historic buildings with a newly-built apartment building,” said Michael Kelley, partner, Kelley Companies. “The plan we came up with is a good one, and if the project happens, it’ll be a win for the OBGC, a win for the neighborhood, and a win for advocates of historic preservation.”
With State of Ohio approved tax credits, the 48 Parkwood team will continue its plans to preserve the historic site. Total renovations will result in the creation of 36 mostly one-bedroom boutique apartments, reviving a sight that has been blighted for years.
Aminah Robinson Fellowship and Residency
artwork by Marshall L. Shorts
The Greater Columbus Arts Council recently announced the Aminah Robinson Fellowship and the Aminah Robinson Residency. The 2020 Fellowship is open to one local African American artist who resides in Franklin County and the 2020 Residency is open to one African American artist in the United States. This is an opportunity for artists to - https://www.gcac.org/grants-services/individual-artist-fellowships/
The Greater Columbus Arts Council, in partnership with the Columbus Museum of Art, offers a 90-day artist fellowship and unrestricted award for a local professional African American visual artist residing in Franklin County. The fellowship is intended to provide an artist with the gift of time to develop a work in progress and connect to resources related to the work of MacArthur Fellow Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson.
Thanks so much for helping us spread the word about the 2020 Aminah Robinson Fellowship and Residency within your networks and for helping us honor Aminah Robinson’s legacy.
Give Kids A Smile Day
The Ohio State University College of Dentistry is offering free dental exams, cleanings, extractions, filling and crowns for children under 18 years of age. The event is Saturday, February 8 at the College of Dentistry, Postle Hall, 305 W. 12th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210. You must call 614.688.3783 to schedule an appointment. Learn more.