New Haven readies for millions in federal aid

JULIA TIERNAN/YH TRICLKE-DOWN: Federal funds could be a boon in the city's fight against blight—if these funds ever get to the communities that need them.

New Haven's recent award of federal Empowerment Zone money has its cheering section and its critics. Amidst the applause of Yale and city officals, some local citizens and student volunteers wonder how the grant will get past bureaucratic red tape.

As one of 15 cities nationwide chosen as an Empowerment Zone city, New Haven will receive $100 million in cash and $130 million in tax credits over the next decade to create jobs in poor neighbohoods. Michael Kuczkowski, spokesperson for Mayor John DeStefano, Jr., confirmed that six neighborhoods will be targeted by the Empowerment Zone project, including Dixwell, Dwight, and Fair Haven. Still to be determined, however, is how these funds will be appropriated.

Curlena McDonald, a community activist and resident of the Dwight neighborhood, voiced concern about the strings often attached to federal grants, which specify what kinds of programs must be funded while neglecting city residents' needs. "We need to make sure that we return to the idea of grassroots: that the ideas come from the people and the money is then directed towards those needs," she said.

McDonald stressed the need for New Haven to focus its efforts on low-income residents between ages 16 and 31. "This group needs more than just jobs--they need life skills," she said. "We need to restore some sense of confidence in these people so that they can see themselves as valuable to the community."

Ward Seven Alder Esther Armmand remained confident, however, that New Haven can meet the challenge of distributing a large grant by building on the existing Enterprise Community, a local program that creates jobs.

"[The grant] gives the city of New Haven an opportunity to make an effort in the neighborhoods, where we can really make a difference," Armmand said. "This is the impetus for the city to be very accountable [for the money]." She pointed out that the federal government must have recognized this potential in New Haven as well, given that only 15 cities throughout the nation received the grant.

Yale students familiar with local neighborhoods sided with the average citizen's worry about allocation of the funds. Peter Stein,
DC '99, an Urban Fellow working in the Dixwell neighborhood, raised doubts about the city's ability to use Empowerment Zone funds effectively, calling the grant a "mixed blessing."

Stein described the struggle between the city and neighborhoods over control of the funding. "The Empowerment Zone money has the potential to be used for some really great things," he said. "However, there are certain forces that are trying to subvert the democratic process in place in the neighborhoods that would defeat the purpose of the grant."

Justin Berger, ES '99, an Urban Fellow in the Newhallville neighborhood, also anticipated a struggle between city and neighborhoods over control of the funding. Like Armmand, he compared the grant to the much smaller Enterprise Community program. "When the Enterprise Community first began, the first year was spent arguing over whether the city or the neighborhoods would control it," Berger said. "There's going to be a massive struggle." As Berger and Stein explained, under the Enterprise Community program, power rests not in the neighborhoods but in a slow bureaucratic process.

Sheila Masterson, co-chair of the city-wide Enterprise Community program and a resident of the Dwight neighborhood, discussed the next step for the city. "The Dwight neighborhood has a strategic plan and our next step is to revisit that strategic plan and reprioritize," she said. "A critical thing is that each neighborhood needs to draw up a plan. Neighborhoods need to base priorities on the needs of the people, not on the money available."

"The Empowerment Zone is an opportunity to sit down and to change the way we feel about our city, to change the way our city looks and the way our city works," Masterson added. Kuczkowski echoed her enthusiasm. "We want to expand on the success of the existing Enterprise Community program in order to bring more jobs to New Haven's neighborhoods."

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