“What I enjoy the most was working together and having people listening to me”
Participant
About Barbara Jean Wright Court
In June 2024 we tested the toolkit in Chicago at Barbara Jean Wright Court, a recently refurbished development of 272 low-rise units in Chicago. The refurbishment included upgrading the homes and external spaces and a new community building called the clubhouse, where we held the sessions.
Impact and Insights
These sessions allowed a group of neighbours who live close to each other, to meet up, get to know each other and talk about what life is like at BJ Wright.
We were joined by Jonathan Rose Companies staff members at both sessions. Rose Companies has a commitment to resident engagement and they were keen to hear ideas from the residents for programming at the new community centre, and use the sessions as part of their ongoing community building work.
After running the session at BJ Wright, we realised that it might not always be appropriate to pay participants. For example it might set up difficult relationships with other residents not taking part.
“It helped us reach out to residents because it gave us a reason to convene, it catapulted our relationship with our residents and accelerated our engagement.”
Lori Stanlick, Jonathan Rose Companies
How we tested the toolkit
On the first day, we tested The Local Neighbourhood and Looking at the Home sections of the Toolkit. On the second day, we tested Visiting the Neighbourhood and toured the immediate neighbourhood on foot, hearing from the residents how they used the outdoor spaces, and then completed the poster collage activity from the Looking at Proposals section of the toolkit.
Preparation
The sessions were advertised by the Resident Service Coordinator, based at the site, who then recruited 6 parents who live on the BJ Wright campus. JRCo led on all of the practical arrangements, including organising childcare, catering, and providing the equipment for the sessions. Lori Stanlick and Dawn Mottram from JRCo came along to both sessions.
Activities
The first session allowed parents to tell us about their experiences of their neighbourhood and homes in BJ Wright. We ran the exercises in The Local Neighbourhood and Looking at the Home, side by side, with three parents completing each activity. We found out about how the campus had changed during the refurbishment and the opportunities their children now had to play safely.
The walking tour on the second day allowed us to hear about specific spots - play areas, footpaths and security around the site. We heard about how parents sit out on their stoop, watch children and meet other parents.
In the collage exercise, parents made a welcome poster that included programmes such as counselling facilities, cooking classes, fitness classes, study groups, talent shows and food distribution. The management team at the clubhouse were keen to involve the parents in activities in the future and felt that the sessions had created a good base to do that from.