Making Midtown Detroit a Better Place to Live!

My name is Nicole Stagg and I serve with the AmeriCorps Midtown Urban Safety (AMUS) Project in Midtown Detroit. Alongside community organizations and local law enforcement, we are working to reduce crime in the area and create a more livable environment for everyone. Despite Detroit's reputation as a dangerous and blighted city, there is a vibrant community here that is working to make the city a safer place!

The main focus of our initiative so far has been forming block clubs – much like neighborhood watch groups – throughout our target area. It has been great to see people getting to know their neighbors better. Many times people introduce themselves at our block club meetings, and then learn they live right next door to each other!

Research shows that in more tight-knit communities, crime is lower, a result of residents looking out for each other and watching over the neighborhood. In bringing people together with their neighbors, we are able to strengthen connections between residents, making them better prepared for adverse events.

Additionally, through our collaboration with the Wayne State Police Department, we're able to disseminate relevant crime data and security information, which residents can then use to protect themselves and form action plans. Through this communication, the neighborhood is more able to respond to crime threats.

The meetings also serve as a forum for residents to come up with neighborhood improvement strategies. Linked together by common concerns, people are able to clearly identify the most pressing neighborhood issues and come up with collaborative solutions. From block to block, neighbors have banded together to do everything from starting to plan a security patrol to organizing a neighborhood cleanup!

Our project has also been able to collaborate with a number of community organizations to help beautify the area. So far, we've helped rehabilitate a local park, spruced up neighborhood streets, and tomorrow we will be boarding up an abandoned house! This project has been especially rewarding for me, given that I live in one of our project’s target neighborhoods, and I can see the changes occurring firsthand.

The community support and gratitude we've seen as a result of our project is truly inspiring. It is incredibly satisfying to know that through our service, community members are able to see their dreams for Midtown start to happen. Moreover, we’re starting to see the effects of our actions in more concrete ways: due in part to our efforts, crime is down in the Midtown area!