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THE WAY IT WAS …
Early
in 1998
an old man said, sadly, “The neighborhood wasn’t always like
this. It used to be people took pride keeping up their homes.
Used to be people sat on their porches, visited, watched out for
each other. It used to be quiet and safe. It used to be a good
place to live.”
But then, all around us, day or night, we could see
prostitutes walking up and down, sometimes doing their business
in the back seat of a car right on the street … even next to the
elementary school when the children were at play. Cars stopped
in the middle of the street, drivers buying drugs from cocky
young men, or running in and out of houses where drugs were
sold. Sporadic gunfire was heard every day. There were vicious
assaults, sometimes killing. Three Police Captains advised me
(a community development worker) to stay out of the
neighborhood, even during the day … too dangerous. Boarded
houses, others in awful disrepair, and trash-filled vacant lots
where good homes “used to be” bore stark witness to how
far the neighborhood had declined over nearly four decades of
job losses and deepening hardship for people in this Central
City neighborhood.
AND
THEN CAME CHANGE …
The best in human spirit does not disappear, no matter the
circumstances. First came the call from a woman, back in her
ancestral home after thirty years living and working out of
state. Dismayed at conditions in the neighborhood of her happy
childhood, she asked for help to save a condemned turn-of the
century home across the street from demolition. She reached out
and found willing partners … a carpenter dedicated as she was to
restoration of people and houses and places, even when he was
threatened or his tools repeatedly stolen … a community
development worker, caught up in the vision of what could be …
neighbors and more. Her leadership and persistence worked. The
house was restored, and sold to a first-time homebuyer. She
started taking daily exercise walks in the neighborhood, waving,
calling out to residents peeking out from behind their window
curtains, isolated by fear. Over time, others …men, women,
children… joined the walks, and talked of what they could do to
recapture their neighborhood the way it “used to be.”
Other neighbors stepped up to report criminal activity to
authorities. One defied drug dealers by refusing to let them
hide guns and drugs from police on her property, then stood her
ground when they shot at her feet. Another, not from the
neighborhood -quiet, reserved, determined- bought one of those
vacant lots and built a new home next to the school. She, like
others, invested her time, talent, hard-earned assets and
courage to drive out crime and restore the neighborhood. Even
after night-time thieves tried to frighten her away with
repeated break-ins, she stayed as a shining example to many
others who followed her lead and built new homes too.
NOW
…
The gun
fire, drug trafficking and prostitution have virtually
disappeared. Homes have been or are being restored. Sixty-five
new homes have been constructed and occupied …construction is
planned for 54 more new homes. High production gardens are
cultivated annually, and a small tree nursery has been planted.
People enjoy their neighborhood, meet and greet on the street
…even at night! ... work and play together, and watch out for
one another.
Walnut Way’s resident-driven program planning and
implementation has focused on launching and sustaining
experiential educational initiatives that inform and
engage youth and adult residents in:
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Civic and
community leadership
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Housing
construction and restoration
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Stewardship
of environmental resources
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Economic
Development
Walnut Way residents and volunteers have five years of
successful experience in urban-ecology-based initiatives,
including nearly eliminating drug and prostitution activity in
the neighborhood; creating and managing multiple,
high-production community gardens; conducting successful,
profitable sales of garden produce, on-going gardening and
nutrition education programs for youth and adults; launching a
storm-water education program; installing rain gardens, rain
barrels and other strategies to manage storm-water runoff at the
neighborhood level; establishing
a small shade-tree nursery to expand the urban tree canopy;
and converting a former drug house/murder site into a prime
turn-of-the-19th century restoration which will serve
as a neighborhood gathering spot for educational as well as
social purposes. The Neighborhood Center dream includes creating
a computer lab in the basement, providing youth and adults who
don’t have home computers access to the technology, helping them
build competitive skills.
Walnut Way has established strong working partnerships with
other community entities to strengthen their programs, including
partnerships with Growing Power, Keep Greater Milwaukee
Beautiful, City of Milwaukee Economic Development Corp, Dept of
City Development, MATC’s Horticultural Program, UW-Extension,
UW-Milwaukee and WHEDA.
Beyond the
obvious benefits, Walnut Way’s initiatives have renewed
residents’ connections to African-American cultural roots, built
a sense of community involvement and independence,
and taught valuable skills to both youth and adult residents.
Many
ways to help….
Walnut Way Conservation Corp welcomes help in many forms to
fulfill its mission and achieve ambitious goals.
The
following is a list of gifts Walnut Way could use at this time:
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Advise,
information, time, talent, resources
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To design,
equip and install a demonstration kitchen at Neighborhood
House for year-round expansion of the summer nutrition
education program for children, youth and adults
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to build
and lease up the proposed Earth Center on North Avenue.
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Computers,
printers, work stations for the Neighborhood
Center
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Folding
chairs and tables for classes and meetings at Neighborhood
Center
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Dwarf Fruit
Trees, or funds to purchase same for the Urban Orchard
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Hardy
perennial flower plants to help build more rain gardens for
storm-water runoff management
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Walnut
Way Conservation Corp. 
