.MzMyNg.MzMyNg

Re sident Involvement During Planni nq Proce ~s In December 1967 the residents of the Mod~ l Ne ighborhood Area selected the s tructure tha t they_ felt would be the most workable and repre sentat i ve o f the s i ~ ne ighborhoods that make up the Atlanta Model Cities Program. ( see figure on community structure) . l•Iass Convent:!.0.1 The Mass Convention is open t o a ll Mode l Neighborhood Area residents. Here the cit:i.zen·s .have an op portunity to hear the progress made to improve their coromunity and to voice their views on the Model Cities Pro gram. The Mass Convention also guarantees to every Mode l Neighbcrhood Area res ident that all elections that relate_ to the organizatio n o f the Mode l Neighborhood Area will be conducted in an orderly and democrati c manner. The Mass Conventio n also symbolizes the idea that the Model Neighborhood Area is a unified c ommunity with many similar · as·s ets and liabilities in each of the six concerned neighborhoods. Executive Board The 14 me mbe r Executive Board i s the policy making body in the Model cities organization. It is c omposed o f six neighborhood residents . (One elected representative fr om each of s ix · · neighborhoods _within the Model Neighborhood Area). In addition to the six citizens , it includes the f ollowing: Mayor of the City o f At l anta , one citi zen repr esenting the Atlanta Negro community, one citizen from the genera l Atlanta Community, one repr esentative from the Atlanta Board o f Education , one repres e ntat i'.,e from the Stai.:e of G~orgia , two Aldermen from the City of Atlanta , and ~he Fulto n County Commissi on chairma n. Steering Committee The 16 merri::)er citizen ' s Steering Committee serves as the Mass Co nvention when i t is not in session . It ac c epts recommendation s a nd proposa ls from each o f the six n eighborhoods. It wi ll bring th~s~ recommenda~ions and propo sals to the Mas s Conventio r:. and t h e Executive Board. The Steering Committee is also responsible for deve loping a n effective citizen organization in each of the s i x neighborhoods. It is compo sed of the f our Mass Convention officers, six neighborhood vice chairmen (one elect e d fr om each of the s ix neighborhoods) ·a nd six residents who serve on the Executive Board. Neighborhood Advisor y Councils The Neighborhood Advisory council structure is designed to organize citizens at the neighborhood level •. The residents decided to use thr ee basic structures of organization. Adair Park elected it s repr,2sentatives on an area-wide basis. Grant Park and Peoplestown elected their representatives on a district basis. Mecr.anicsville, Pitt sbm·gh, and Summerhill elected its representatives through the block structure. �The basic function of the councils is to coordinat e all activity in the neighborho0d and to be sure that all operating and standing committees are functioning at maximum efficiency. Operating committees Each of the six neighborhoods has 11 operating commj tt ees for the following program areas: Health, Ed1_tcation, Welfare and Social Services, Hou sing, Relocation, De s i .gn and Preservation Physical Improve ments, Public Facilities, Ernplcyment, Crime Prevention and Re creation. These commit.tees played a valuable role in the planning phase of Model Cities Programs through working with pl a nners in identifying problems ti.nd s uggesting solutions to solve these problems. The Operating Committee s work closely with thE: .:leighborhood Advisory Council so that all proposals from the community will be coordinated through the council. Membership on th-J Operating Committees is open to any resident of the-neighborhood. Standing Commi ttees 'J~he St anding Comm.i.t.tees serve a s th e o rga nizational arm for the Mass Con ve ntion and the s i x nei ghborhoods within Atlar.ta's Model Ne ighbo rhood Area . There are seven committe e s (Boundary, credenti als, Nor.ti n.at ions, Pr ogram, Org3 ni zation, Resolutions, and Con sti tution and By-Laws ) . Each neighborhood has three representatives on each committee. Techni8 a l Adviscry Bo ar d The purpose of the Technical Advisory Boa rd is to 1:eview the pl ans of the re s idents and planners, and to offer technical advice. Members ar e r.epr e se ntatives of various community organiz a tion s . Total membership is open - ended, allowing the Model Cities Prog r am Director to appoint anyone who might aid the program. �