What do you see when you pass a vacant lot in a city? Many only notice the overgrown weeds, scattered pieces of trash or remnants of what was once there. But Naomi Davis, Founder and CEO of Chicago-based nonprofit Blacks in Green, sees purpose and opportunity.
She has a plan for vacant lots in the West Woodlawn neighborhood on Chicago’s south side — a plan to turn this historic Black community into a Sustainable Square Mile.
Starting small and thinking big
The Sustainable Square Mile is the foundation of Blacks in Green’s mission. The group’s goal is to tackle pollution and poverty by creating a community where Black-owned businesses are surrounded by affordable housing. Davis describes it as a walk-to-work, walk-to-shop, walk-to-learn, walk-to-play lifestyle that is eco-friendly in its roots.
“We’re building the capacity of neighbors to own, develop and manage the property in their community. It gives a sense of place and a sense of belonging that so enriches and empowers people,” Davis said.
The Sustainable Square Mile is in a pilot phase in West Woodlawn. Blacks in Green has purchased several properties to get started. The nonprofit has a storefront, called the Green Living Room, that serves as its current headquarters and a community gathering space, with plans to rebuild the vacant building next door that was damaged by a fire. Several other parcels in the area are earmarked with plans to create sustainably built housing, community gardens and open green spaces.
Blacks in Green’s most recent property purchase came from the support of ADT. ADT’s $100,000 donation allowed Blacks in Green to buy a vacant church that will serve as a community center, climate emergency resource and offices for its staff as the nonprofit grows.
“This generous donation allowed us to move quickly and secure a critical historic property that Blacks in Green will preserve, restore with best green practices, and utilize for cultural activities, events and programs to serve the community,” said David Yocca, Blacks in Green’s Director of Green Infrastructure.
ADT to help protect historic landmark
Blacks in Green has five tenets to the Sustainable Square Mile: energy, horticulture, housing, waste management and tourism. The West Woodlawn pilot area includes a historic landmark property that is the foundation of Blacks in Green’s tourism project: the childhood home of Emmett Till.
Till was a teenager in the 1950s when he was murdered by two white men in Mississippi. His killing galvanized the Civil Rights Movement after his mother held his open-casket funeral. Blacks in Green is renovating the Till family home in an energy-efficient way, to turn it into a museum, educational theater and heritage hub so visitors can pay tribute to the Till family and learn about the Great Migration that led many Black Americans to Chicago and other Northern states in the 1940s, '50s and '60s.
ADT’s donation to Blacks in Green also includes a smart security system that will help protect the Till House Museum.
“We are committed to the comfort and security of the people in our community,” said Nuri Madina, Blacks in Green’s Sustainable Square Mile Director. “This is something that we hope they will appreciate in our relationship with ADT.”
Through its ADT Safe Places program, ADT is proud to support Blacks in Green’s efforts to build safe, smart and sustainable communities. Click here to learn more about how ADT gives back to communities.