We Met the Neighbors!
One of the things we wanted to accomplish in our journey was to try to do in a local Detroit community what we had done in our business community…to bring a sense of purpose, values and meaning. But we realized early on that this wasn’t something we were going to be able to do on our own – we needed to do it in a collaborative way.
As we researched locations for Kintsugi Village and ultimately landed on the neighborhood of Corktown, we knew it would be critical to get community input on our plans, to share what we wanted to do with them instead of for them. We understood that there had already been extensive new development in the area, and that development was not always welcome. We figured that if we could start early and share our vision with local residents, we could build trust, get great ideas or course correct as needed.
So we reached out to the local “block group” leaders and asked them to invite residents to a neighborhood meeting at McShane’s Irish Bar in Corktown. We promised some snacks and drinks in return for their attention and feedback. We even walked door to door with flyers to let people know about the meeting.
It was a cold Monday night in December, but 40 brave (including our first two student kiddos) and interested residents joined us at McShane’s Pub, filled with curiosity and questions. We shared our plans to build a community hub on the old St. Vincent school site that would include an early education center, an artist incubator/residency program, a retreat center for community organizations to gather, and a culinary kitchen to support it all. We also shared how our campus will include a nearly one-acre public space housing a community garden and greenhouse. We finally talked about how all of the initiatives would be integrated and asked residents to picture kids from the school baking cookies in the kitchen, neighbors attending a painting workshop in the art center, or residents helping grow vegetables in the garden.
What followed were a litany of questions and suggestions, and we took furious notes. In the room, we had a wide ranging group of guests from young families, new professionals, to decades-long residents of Corktown. Best of all, we received overwhelming support for our vision and multiple offers to help. We promised that this was the first of many meetings and asked attendees to spread the word and make additional connections for us.
We left this first meeting with a sense of warmth and belonging…we know we’ve chosen the right place!