Planning with Gullah Geechee Descendant Communities

DEFINING GULLAH/GEECHEE

The Gullah/Geechee people are descendants of enslaved Africans brought to the New World and forced to work on the plantations of coastal South Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina and Florida.

Gullah/Geechee people have retained many aspects of their African heritage due to the geographic barriers of the coastal landscape and the strong sense of place and family of Gullah/Geechee community members.

NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA

 28 COUNTIES

 +80 BARRIER ISLANDS

 4 STATES

 12,315 SQ. MILES

 5 MILLION PEOPLE

 30 MILES INLAND FROM THE ATLANTIC OCEAN

NORTHEAST FLORIDA GULLAH GEECHEE COMMUNITIES

GULLAH/GEECHEE FRAMEWORK AND EXPRESSION TODAY IN JACKSONVILLE

FOLKLORE AND CULTURAL HERITAGE

FOODWAYS

GARBAGE CARROTTS AND BAKED CHICKEN SPICY SEAFOOD GUMBO PEAS AND RICE PLANTAINS CORN BREAD

PASSION FRUIT - KEY WEST STYLE

EDUCATE INSPIRE DEVELOP PRESERVE

8 WEEKS INTO PLANTING SEASON

First Planting Season

8 Weeks into Planting Season

RIBAULT SCENIC PRESERVES

THE PATH PAVED BEFORE ME

MAP OF GULLAH GEECHEE COMMUNITIES

PUBLIC POLICY CONFLICTS

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

HISTORIC PRESERVATION

PRESERVING LAND OWNERSHIP

CULTURAL HERITAGE & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Jacksonville’s Soul Food Bistro

GENTRIFICATION

CULTURAL APPROPRIATION

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

“If you don’t have a seat at the table, you’re probably on the menu.”

- Elizabeth Warren

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES

“If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.”

- Shirley Chisholm

WHAT IS WITHINTRIFICATION?

within·tri·fi·ca·tion

• Revitalization that’s driven by the people already in the neighborhood.

• It means identifying assets in the community, bringing them together under common objectives, and raising the value of the place from within at a pace appropriate for revitalizing the existing community, not displacing it.

WHAT WITHIN-TRIFICATION LOOKS LIKE – TRUE INCLUSION

Withintrification Example: Bronzeville Neighborhood, Chicago, Illinois

CONTACT INFORMATION

GROUNDWORK JACKSONVILLE

 Chartered in 2014

 21 Groundwork Trusts

 Key Partners

• City of Jacksonville

• Groundwork USA

 National Park Service

 US Environmental Protection Agency

MISSION & PURPOSE

 Transform Jacksonville’s Urban Core

• Creek Restoration

• Trail Building

• Community Building

• Leadership/Stewardship/Workforce Development

EMERALD TRAIL

TRAIL BENEFITS

 Recreation

 Health & Wellbeing

 Economic Development

 Mobility

 Neighborhood Revitalization

 Social Connectivity

NORTH RIVERSIDE/ MIXON TOWN

NEIGHBORHOOD DEMOGRAPHICS

 78% African American/Black

 $20,446 median household income

 48% living below the poverty line

 17% unemployment

 62% renter occupied housing units

MCCOYS CREEK

AFTER NORMAL STORM

LITTER

40 ACRE PARK – 1 PLAYGROUND

MCCOYS CREEK RESTORATION PROJECT

 Reduce Flooding

 Improve Water Quality

 Create Habitat for Fish & Wildlife

 Create Access

 Add Recreation

NEIGHBORHOOD SURVEY

WHAT WE HEARD IN ADDITION TO DESIGN

 Leadership

 Mentorship

 Improve Neighborhood

 Soft Skills

 Jobs

 Littering/Environmental Health

Community Restoration Environmental Stewardship Training

Focus Group

 St. Johns Riverkeeper

 Water Management District

 Zoo & Gardens

 Audubon Society

 City of Jacksonville

 University of Florida –Extension Office

CREST

 Inter-generational

 Environmental Education

 Field Trips

 Leadership

 Training/Job

EQUITY PLANNING-THE PROCESS

 Engagement

 Training

 Steering Committee

 Community-led Vision

 Plan

 Partnerships/Ownership

NORTH RIVERSIDE VISION

History & Culture  Environmental Stewardship

 Nutrition

 Youth  Safety

10-YEAR EQUITY PLAN

 Developed Equity Action Plan

• Housing is top concern

 Home Repair Program

 Affordable Housing

 Identify Partners

• NRCDC, LISC Jax, United Way, GWUSA

A Design Success Story

Retention Pond on McCoys Creek Blvd

Broward Pond “Community Living Room” Concept

Broward Pond “Community Living Room”

May 2022

LISC & partners utilize data to identify neighborhoods

$

Residents and partners design interventions

LISC provides resources to support interventions

Ownership is preserved and equity gains accrued

Parcels of Heirs’ Property

2022 Tax Certificate Auction Sales

9 corporate entities account for 80% of total bids.

JLP Investments and TLOA Holdings LLC account for 50% of total bids.

Eastside

• Dark Boarder Outline - Possible Heirs properties

• Green- No Identified Problem

• Yellow- Missing Homestead exemption flag

• Blue- USPS Vacant structure

• Purple- USPS Vacant structure & Vital Statistic flag

• Orange- Missing Homestead exemption flag & USPS Vacant structure

• Pink- Missing Homestead exemption flag & Vital Statistic flag

• Red- Vital Statistic

• Grey- Vacant Residential lot

What we’re learning

Data Driven, culturally relevant outreach

Unclear ownership impacts home value

Leverage SHIP and USDA