2000115-Strengthening-Communities-with-Neighborhood-Data

162 Strengthening Communities with Neighborhood Data
Public officials and other stakeholders set priorities as to which properties
within the neighborhood to acquire, demolish, or rehabilitate.
The data also support decisions by community groups working to prevent
foreclosures. These groups use listings of properties that the data
indicate may be likely foreclosure candidates as the basis for prioritizing
door-knocking efforts. For example, they give high priority to a property
just entering foreclosure that is next door to one that has just been
renovated. The parcel-level information also is used to target actions
inside the neighborhood by the city’s code enforcement staff and neighborhood
groups to put pressure on owners of properties that are not
being adequately maintained.
The final aspect that warrants mention is how the use of NEO
CANDO spurred collaboration. Over time, participation in the mapping
sessions spread to include CDCs, residents, city officials, nonprofit
counseling and advocacy groups, realtors, and lenders. Participants have
said the fact that they were all using the same data promoted inclusiveness
in the process. Reliance on common data meant less disagreement
than would otherwise have been the case. Decisions, for example, about
which properties to rehabilitate and which to demolish were less controversial
because all participants knew the reasoning and facts behind
the choices.
Applications in Large-Scale Comprehensive Initiatives:
Examining the Potential for Performance Management
The largest comprehensive community development programs in operation
over the past decade were those managed by the Local Initiatives
Support Corporation (LISC): its 16 neighborhood New Communities
Program (NCP) in Chicago and its Building Sustainable Communities
(BSC) initiative, which has operated in just over 100 neighborhoods
in 24 other metro areas (Walker et al. 2010). 12 The BSC model calls
for coordinated investment across five programmatic domains: housing
and real estate, connection to regional economies, family income
and wealth generation, education, and public health and safety (Walker
et al. 2010).
Key features of both of these initiatives include (1) extensive and continuing
community organizing, (2) engaging residents in the preparation
of a community quality-of-life plan, (3) enduring community partnerships,
and (4) active intermediation across sectors and between the