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.

Kingsley Plantation – Fort George Island (Duval County, FL)

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

Broad Street Corridor in Jacksonville’s LaVilla Neighborhood

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Jacksonville’s Eastside Neighborhood

HISTORIC PRESERVATION

The USCT Soldier’s House in Jacksonville’s Brooklyn Neighborhood

PRESERVING LAND OWNERSHIP

Singleton

CULTURAL HERITAGE & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Jacksonville’s Soul Food Bistro

GENTRIFICATION

St. Augustine’s Lincolnville Historic District

CULTURAL APPROPRIATION

Gullah Beer in Charleston, SC

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

Gloria E. McNair

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