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CKG September Tenant Council Meeting
United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC), in collaboration with The Community Builders (TCB) and Michigan Legal Services (MLS), hosted the September Tenant Council Meeting on September 26th, which highlighted the Resident Champions, Noreena, D.Nisha, & Shandron, who live at Clement Kern Gardens and help lead events for residents. They encouraged residents to fill out surveys from TCB to assist the case managers to understand resident needs. Nova, from MLS, discussed the services offered and showed residents how to complete the State Emergency Relief (SER) application. UCHC led a group discussion about tenant responsibilities and informed residents on re-certifications and housing upkeep.
CKG August Tenant Council Meeting
UCHC, in collaboration with The Community Builders, facilitated the August Tenant Council Meeting on August 29th, which focused on back-to-school programming and community resources. The Fair Food Network and PNC Bank spoke about food and financial resources available in the community. Matrix Human Services, Great Start Collaboration, Mercy Education Project and Congress of Community spoke about tutoring programs and school support programs they offer families. UCHC and TCB ended the event with a backpack raffle for families who participated in the event.
CKG July Tenant Council Meeting
Newlab at Michigan Central Mobility started the meeting to discuss how the Veggie Express program creates sustainable solutions that provide fresh foods to communities. The Veggie Express is a food transport project that picks up and drops off produce from urban farms to processing and distribution center and serves as a grocery store on wheels. AmeriCorps Community Training (ACT) Program presented an Overdose Rescue training where residents learned about Narcan, CPR, and health safety. Residents who completed an intake received one free dose of Narcan and learned how to use it, as well as free fentanyl test strips. The last activity was a community discussion about ways to decrease crime and improve safety.
CKG May Tenant Council Meeting
Bethany Howard, Project Manager of City Walls, and muralist Jesse Kassel kicked off the meeting by discussing the upcoming mural to be created on the Corktown Substation at Trumbull and Porter Streets. Bethany presented preliminary designs by Jesse and asked for feedback from CKG residents. Suggestions from the audience included: more kids and families, more diversity of people, more elements of transportation, and more messaging around community values.
CKG April Tenant Council Meeting
Erin Rogers from Independent Management Services (IMS) and Michael Schickler from American Community Developers (ACD), provided updates to residents about the future development at CKG and spoke about how the timeline for temporary relocation depends on the construction schedule. Claudia Sanford, Ted Phillips, Pablo Marcos and Meg Marotte from the United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC) gave a presentation about tenants' rights.
CKG March Tenant Council Meeting
Claudia Sanford from United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC) and Winona Bynum from the Detroit Food Policy Council spoke to residents about upcoming projects and food related resources in the city. Claudia also spoke about the idea of creating a film about the CKG development and its residents. Christina Mireles from The Community Builders (TCB), spoke about upcoming events at CKG.
CKG February Tenant Council Meeting
Representatives from United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC), American Community Developers (ACD), The Community Builders (TCB), and Corktown Neighborhood Association (CNA) were all present. Mike Essian of ACD & Jeff Beam of TCB discussed new developments at CKG & Preserve on Ash. Sheila Cockrel from CNA shared details of upcoming community events.
CKG December Holiday Event
United Community Housing Coalition teamed up with The Community Builders for a Winter Extravaganza in the parking lot of Clement Kern Gardens. Residents could decorate holiday cookies, design Christmas ornaments, and decorate a tree. Officer Hawkins, the neighborhood police officer, showed up right in time for the dance party. Melinda of TCB lead the caroling group. Everyone was invited to warm up in the toasty tent with hot chocolate and a hot meal. Residents had the opportunity to win one of the beautiful trees and other assorted gifts through the raffle.
CKG October Tenant Council Meeting
The meeting began with a drum performance featuring drummers from Heritage Works, a local arts non-profit. Rhonda Green, the Executive Director of Heritage works gave a presentation about its programs, upcoming events, and how to get involved. Next, Sheila Cockrel of the Corktown Neighborhood association announced the newest editions to their board, CKG residents Rhonda Ellington and Trenae Richmond. She will bring membership applications to the next CKG Tenant Council meeting for anyone interested in joining. The meeting concluded with Ciona Hall from the City of Detroit and Claudia Sanford discussing development concerns with residents.
CKG September Tenant Council Meeting
Kimberly Cooley, Career Coach with Ser Metro came to speak to the residents and let her know her commitment to providing access and employment opportunities for CKG residents throughout the CNI Project.
CKG August Tenant Council Meeting
Special guest Sheila Cockrel gave a presentation about the Corktown Neighborhood Association and the Corktown Business Association. The Corktown Neighborhood Association (CNA) assists neighborhood organizations and block clubs to promote the interests of Corktown residents.
CKG July Tenant Council Meeting
Special guest Councilmember Gabriela Santiago-Romero began the meeting by introducing herself to the CKG Tenant Council and gave a brief history of her background and what brought her to the City Council. Environmental justice, housing, transit, and enriching resources in the neighborhood are some key issues her administration have been focusing. She encouraged CKG tenant council to reach out to her office with any issues they may be facing.
CKG May Mother's Day Paint Party
The women of CKG were celebrated for Mother's Day with a paint party! Mothers and their children were able to spend time together painting, enjoying pastries, and engaging in conversations with their family and neighbors. This event brought three generations of girls and women from CKG together to celebrate mothers and mother-figures.
CKG April Tenant Council Meeting
UCHC hosted an Emergency Preparedness Fair at Clement Kern Gardens. Chief James Harris, Chief of Community Relations at the Detroit Fire Department, spoke about fire safety and how to respond to different emergency situations. Officer Brad Hawkins, Neighborhood Police Officer of the Third Precinct spoke to the crowd about some basic personal safety tips. Juwan Outlaw, Public Affairs Specialist for Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, gave a presentation about water safety. Gibran Washington, Manager of Eco-D at EcoWorks, went through the bucket of supplies he provided for residents and described how they could use each item to keep their homes safe and sustainable.
CKG March Chromebook & Hotspot Event
The City partnered with Human-I-T in efforts to bridge the digital divide and distributed 86 Chromebooks and Hotspots to residents of Clement Kern Gardens as part of the digital literacy component as part of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative.
CKG February Tenant Council Meeting
The United Community Housing Coalition was excited to kick off the first monthly Resident Council meeting. Senator Stephanie Chang discussed an elevator bill that she’s been working on designed to address accessibility issues. Alexis Alexander and Ciona Hall from the City of Detroit discussed the Choice Neighborhood Initiative grant. Kinyel Friday from the Community Builders spoke about resident engagement. Claudia Sanford of UCHC facilitated a discussion where tenants could voice their concerns. UCHC will continue to work with partners and residents to address these concerns with management.
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