In Spring 2023, Cooper County community partners kicked off a collaborative community needs assessment process with a data walk. At the data walk, CMCA shared county-specific data related to education, housing, health, income, education, employment, and other social characteristics as well as the results from a jointly designed and distributed community survey. Data walk participants included local community members, social service organizations, local employers, educational institutions, and local government representatives. CMCA facilitated a guided discussion about the data, resulting in the prioritization of housing and food security as primary needs within Cooper County.
Community Conversations
With funding from the Missouri Foundation for Health, CMCA staff guided local stakeholders through a series of community conversations from Summer 2023 through Spring 2024 using a process called Results Based Accountability™ (RBA). These meetings resulted in the joint development of a community plan to address housing and food security in Cooper County.
RBA is a data-driven, decision-making process developed by Mark Friedman. RBA uses a structured, step-bystep process called “Turn the Curve Thinking” to help communities move from talk to action and to harness the power of collective impact to make sustainable change.
Developing the Plan: Food Security
First, the community developed a shared result statement that defined the outcome the community intends to achieve through the plan.
All people in Cooper County are food secure.
Next, the community identified specific data indicators that will be used to measure the community’s progress toward achieving the result. Stakeholders reviewed baseline data that included forecasted data trends. In RBA, success is defined as “turning the curve,” or moving the data point away from that forecasted baseline, indicating that the community’s efforts are working and that positive change is taking place.
Community partners explored “the story behind the curve,” or the various factors that either positively or negatively affect the data. This discussion provided an opportunity to explore root causes and systemic issues that must be addressed in order for the community to truly make an impact.
Root Causes: Food Security
Root causes related to food security in Cooper County include:
• Inflation has driven up the cost of food.
• Access to resources is limited due to hours conflicting with working hours.
• There is a lack of knowledge about resources and existing food programs.
• Eligibility numbers are decreasing because of higher income limits.
Community partners explored existing efforts within Cooper County and collaborated to identify new strategies that would directly address the above root causes and lead to sustainable change within the community. The group ranked each potential strategy against four criteria:
1. How much difference will it make?
2. Is the idea specific enough to be implemented?
3. Do we have the capacity to implement the idea now or in the future?
4. Does the idea reflect our community values?
Strategies that ranked the highest on all four criteria were selected for inclusion in the community plan.
Key Strategies: Food Security
The community has chosen to pursue the following strategies to address food security in Cooper County. These strategies will help the community achieve the result:
All people in Cooper County are food secure.
Strategy #1 - Partner with Food Pantry, WIC, Farmer’s Market, Salvation Army, Health Department, etc., to expand food voucher system.
This strategy will address the lack of knowledge of food resources and their availability. It will also work to expand the locations where these resources can be used. The Health Department has volunteered to assist WIC participants to sign up for vouchers to use at the Boonville Farmer’s Market.
Strategy #2 - Expand current Community Garden program.
This strategy will seek to expand the current demo garden for children into a community garden and invite interested parties to participate.
Developing the Plan: Housing
First, the community developed a shared result statement that defined the outcome the community intends to achieve through the plan.
All people in Cooper County have quality housing.
Next, the community identified specific data indicators that will be used to measure the community’s progress toward achieving the result.
Community partners explored root causes and systemic issues that must be addressed in order for the community to truly make an impact.
Root Causes: Housing
Root causes related to housing in Cooper County include:
• Historic segregation and discrimination made home ownership impossible.
• Loss of generational wealth due to systemic exclusion to homeownership.
• The loan process is complicated.
• Individuals in the community lack knowledge of resources (like USDA Rural Housing).
• Very few landlords accept Housing Choice Vouchers.
• Renters lack documentation necessary to apply for programs.
• There is a shortage of rental properties.
• Rent prices increased after 2020.
Key Strategies: Housing
After exploring existing efforts within Cooper County, brainstorming strategies, and ranking their feasibility and effectiveness, the community has chosen to pursue the following strategies to address housing in Cooper County. These strategies will help the community achieve the result:
All people in Cooper County have quality housing.
Strategy #1 - Create a homeownership event combined with a resource fair including a home-buying seminar. Invite interested parties, such as realtors and lenders to participate.
This strategy will address the lack of education regarding homeownership and finances as well as make connections between the community and housing resources like HUD and USDA.
Strategy #2 - Host an HCV seminar with the Boonville Landlord Association.
This strategy will educate landlords on Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) facts, benefits, landlord and tenant responsibilities, and FAQs to increase the number of landlords who accept HCV.
Strategy #3 - Work with Boonville City Council to create a task force to investigate funding options for housing development.
This strategy will explore potential efforts such as rezoning, MHDC funding, HERO funding, a Housing Trust, and more.
As the community plan moves into the implementation stage, community partners will continue to meet on a regular basis to share progress and solve challenges. The community is encouraged to participate in meetings, aid in implementation, and share the community plan with individuals and organizations that might also be interested in housing and food security in Cooper County.
More information about this plan and its progress can be found on the Show Me Strong Communities website at ShowMeStrongCommunities.com.
