Issue 4

"The Mayor of Bronzeville Campaign was the kind of event that works for everyone and I am proud to work with the merchants and HUD to make it happen." --Illinois State Representative Lou Jones

Community Building in Bronzeville

Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood was once a thriving, stable African American community, similar to Harlem, Kansas City, and Washington, DC. The past several years have taken a toll on the neighborhood, however; a declining homeownership rate and decreasing residential incomes have left Bronzeville economically challenged. In an effort to restore this once-vibrant community, local and City leaders have developed a plan for targeted revitalization. The neighborhood is now part of a HUD-designated Empowerment Zone and an Enterprise Community and Community Builder Michael Asque is working with the Bronzeville revitalization team, which is focusing on increasing the participation of local merchants and improving overall coordination of economic development initiatives in the area.

When Michael first joined the team, he set out to build capacity of local organizations, increasing their ability to foster economic development partnerships and create new job opportunities. Michael found that one local organization, the Bronzeville Merchants Association (BMA) had been overlooked by several previous economic development partnerships despite a record of accomplishments. He began working with BMA, facilitating a three-stage strategic planning process to strengthen the Association’s Commercial Leadership, generate new economic development opportunities, and create 100 or more new jobs in the community within 18 months.

"When I first started working with BMA, it was clear that I needed to establish trust with local merchants," said Asque. "The merchants were wondering, ‘why is HUD offering this service at the grass-roots level?’ However, they soon realized the need for a strategic planning process and recognized the sincerity of our involvement."

Michael facilitated a process through which local merchants developed a plan for restoring BMA’s commercial leadership. They decided their first order of business was to resurrect the annual "Mayor of Bronzeville" campaign to restore appreciation for the community’s rich history, galvanize citizen participation in economic development, foster public and private partnerships for the cause of civic renewal, and increase customer traffic to local merchants. Initiated before World War I, the annual "Mayor of Bronzeville" campaign gave citizens an opportunity to elect a community leader as a symbolic figure to preside over a series of community-building social events and merchandise sales for community members and visitors to Bronzeville. The annual event was so popular in the 1930s that the winning candidate amassed over 13 million votes.

With Michael’s assistance, the Bronzeville business leaders have developed a three- part "Bronzeville Economic Development Agreement," which establishes a partnership between the Bronzeville Merchants Association, HUD, and the Chicago Defender Newspaper. The agreement calls for HUD Community Builders to facilitate local strategic planning; BMA to convene business leaders for planning the annual "Mayor of Bronzeville" and other economic development campaigns; and for the Chicago Defender to promote the "Mayor of Bronzeville" campaign and underwrite costs associated with printing ballots and coupons for local businesses.

On August 13^th, the "Mayor of Bronzeville" campaign was officially revived. Chicago radio legend Herb Kent was elected as the 1999 Mayor of Bronzeville and installed during a ceremonial banquet in front of hundreds of community members and local television and radio stations.

"This is a great thing that the merchants are doing with help from HUD and I am willing to do my part for this community because I grew up here and I want to see it return to its prominence," said Kent.

As a result of this initial campaign the corporate community’s planning process, BMA is providing valuable leadership in development of local tourism and business opportunities. BMA’s membership has increased 100% while the association is developing rich partnerships with the media.

"The Bronzeville Merchants Association has taken a leadership role in revitalizing the business district and creating new jobs," said Col. Eugene Scott, General Manager of the Chicago Defender Daily Newspaper, recognizing the progress during the past year.

Illinois State Representative Lou Jones believes that "the Mayor of Bronzeville Campaign was the kind of event that works for everyone and I am proud to work with the merchants and HUD to make it happen."

"It’s been rewarding to serve as a resource in this whole process," said Asque, who is helping the merchants as they enter the second stage of their strategic plan for Bronzeville. "This project has been one of the most fulfilling of my Community Builder experience as we have been able to see the return from engaging the Department in building local partnerships."