What services does your organization provide to the Rosedale Park community?
The Rosedale Park Improvement Association has been in existence for over 100 years. Our neighborhood was first developed beginning in 1916, with sections developed in stages through the mid-1930s.
- So, the kinds of things the RPIA has offered over the decades have changed with the times.
- We offer community events including a Holiday Pancake Breakfast, Easter Egg Hunt and Picnic, June Day activities including a parade and picnic with kids’ events, a January Gala banquet, landscaping awards with financial assistance for blocks to plant annuals and bulbs.
- We also coordinate with volunteer groups for regular park cleanups, including an annual cleanup with students from the University of Michigan.
- Our dues include funds for street snow removal, a service that the city does not offer unless a major snow emergency is called.
- RPIA also publishes a bi-monthly printed newsletter sent to every house in the neighborhood (over 1600 houses), and a weekly eBlast this is timelier and more immediate neighborhood news.
- We have four regular membership meetings per year with special guest presentations on a variety of topics of interest to the community.
- We also maintain a block captain network, which is a vital part of keeping our neighborhood in the well-maintained and connected condition it is in.
- We also maintain a website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages.
What role does the organization play in the neighborhood?
- I really have to say that the RPIA is vital to the continuing vitality of the neighborhood. Detroit has seen many challenges, as you may be aware, but Rosedale Park and its sister neighborhoods in the area have continued to maintain a high level of vitality and have enjoyed higher property values as a result. There is a strong connection to the neighborhood, and a large percentage of people who move here don’t move away.
- I mentioned the block captain network, and that is an important way we communicate with residents. When there is an issue with a property, the block captain is the person who makes the association aware of any problem and acts as a first contact with the property owner.
- We have several committees who work to maintain the quality of the neighborhood, including a vacant property task force, who deal with absentee owners and investors who might let property conditions fall, and are able to track down those absentee owners (sometimes including international investors) and hold them to a high standard.
- We also have a volunteer Radio Patrol, a Beautification Committee, and so on. Second, we work closely with our local Community Development Corporation, or CDC, the Grandmont-Rosedale Development Corporation. They are a highly respected CDC, which is charged with improving substandard housing in a multi-neighborhood area of Detroit, as well as working with the business community to improve the area. They work with banks, city and state government, and foundations to act as a funding clearinghouse for major projects.
- They are currently redeveloping a vacant IHOP restaurant location into a multi-story mixed-use building on our main business street. They also have worked with the city and state to redesign and rebuild Grand River Avenue in our neighborhood with a new streetscape and traffic calming features. They worked with the Detroit Parks department to rebuild and add amenities to our local parks, including stormwater retention systems.
- They have consulted with the national Main Street organization, and with the Congress for New Urbanism, who have had community design projects in the area. GRDC works closely with all five of the neighborhood associations in their area.
- Third, the leadership of the RPIA and our committees are very well-versed in navigating complex city and county departments. They know who to call, which offices to visit, and how to get things done. Because of that, every elected official and every department is very aware of the way we operate and the importance of RPIA in our community. Our group doesn’t just complain, we take action and get things done.
How has Covid-19 changed how the community interacts? What have you learned from having to make changes in the community through less conventional ways?
- Covid-19 has had a huge impact on our community. Detroit was hard-hit early on in the pandemic, and our neighborhood lost far too many of our neighbors. I spend a lot of time each week updating Covid-19 news from the city, county, and state to include in the weekly eBlast.
- A fair number of our neighbors are seniors, and thus fall into at-risk groups. We make sure that they know about city-wide testing and vaccine locations, hours, and how to arrange for those services. We have moved our general membership meetings and all of our committee meetings to a virtual model, mostly using Zoom.
- Community events like picnics, banquets, and kids’ events have been cancelled for the duration. We have partnered with a sister neighborhood to sponsor monthly blood drives with the Red Cross.
How does your organization work to represent the needs and interests of the community?
I think that my other responses may give you the info you are looking for. Ultimately, I think that we are in tune with what the community is thinking, and we have ways in place to respond.
