In the fall of 2019, the developers of Eden Village, a tiny-home community for the chronically homeless located on East Division, began efforts to build a second community on the site of the former Fairfield Mobile Home Park at 3155 W. Brower in the Bissett neighborhood. This article outlines the engagement between The Gathering Tree (EV developers) and the Bissett Neighborhood Association. BNA’s goal in the process has been to become informed about the project and assure that neighborhood questions and concerns are addressed. BNA feels it is better to establish good communications at the outset in order to facilitate better outcomes.
By late February 2020, the former trailer park had been cleared out and cleaned up, a 6-foot perimeter screening and security fence had been erected and site improvements were under way. On a March Saturday, a volunteer group numbering about 75 came to help with site cleanup and to spread mulch.
The first residents of Eden Village II are slated for occupancy in the fall, with the eventual build-out expected to have 24 tiny homes, similar in construction to Eden Village I. As was the case with EVI, the developers expect many of the homes’ initial costs to be covered by donations from companies, foundations, churches and individuals committed to expanding this pathway to end homelessness. As reported in the News-Leader in late May, the first tiny home was delivered, and was manufactured in Neosho by a local company instead of in Texas as was the case for the homes in EVI. The NL also reported that the developers are well on their way to raising the full amount of money they need for the project.
BNA engagement
In January, the Bissett Neighborhood Association reached out to The Gathering Tree to learn about their plans for a second village in Bissett. The goal was (and is) to predict the neighborhood impacts, and in particular, what the residents along Brower Street might experience.
Impacts could be both positive and negative. Accordingly, BNA sought to learn how project outcomes, including neighborhood impacts, might be advantaged through collaborative efforts between Eden Village, its future residents, BNA and Bissett residents. We believe that being welcoming, neighborly and engaging could result in better outcomes.
BNA’s engagement with The Gathering Tree began with an initial meeting and tour of EVI by BNA representatives. This was followed with efforts to learn the concerns of Bissett residents. These concerns were obtained from informal conversations as well as discussion at a BNA general membership meeting in mid-February. BNA representatives then discussed these concerns with The Gathering Tree. Below is a summary of what BNA representatives learned during our engagement with The Gathering Tree.
Location and pedestrian access
There is a bus stop on site at Eden Village I. In contrast, EVII is located near the end of a dead-end residential street without sidewalks. The nearest bus stop is almost a half-mile walk away, and about half of the trek is on a poorly maintained sidewalk.
Our discussions with The Gathering Tree about this centered on the fact that most residents of EVI do not use the bus. If this holds for EVII, then pedestrian transit will be much less of a concern than Bissett neighbors had assumed. In addition, we hope to work together with the City to address the critical sidewalk issues along this route, and in the Bissett neighborhood in general.
Safety concerns
Another concern of some Bissett neighbors was the fear that some residents of EVII might be dangerous. Related to this concern was whether the screening process for EVII would deny residence to registered sex offenders. EVI was required to have this restriction because of its proximity to a Head Start program. While The Gathering Tree was not inclined to impose this same restriction for EVII, they indicated that there were currently no registered sex offenders on the waiting list for EVII, and that if any were offered residence they would comprise a small number of its total residents and their offenses would not have been recent or habitual. The Gathering Tree emphasized that in selecting residents, they are intent on looking at the whole person – who s/he is today – and not dwell inordinately on any one particular aspect of an individual’s past.
We learned that while physical and mental conditions of the homeless population cover a broad spectrum, the screening process for selecting EVII residents appears to be solid and is intended in part to screen out individuals with extreme disabilities who might require more care than EVII will be set up to provide.
The success of Eden Village’s screening process is proven with the low rate of police calls for service to Eden Village I.
Lack of 24/7 on-site services and staff
Some neighbors were fearful that without case workers and other mental and physical health professionals on-site at all times, the disabilities of some EVII residents might get worse or even spiral out of control. As previously described, in looking at the EVI experience, this issue is significantly mitigated by the resident screening process, by the support of the volunteer “home teams” that create a family-like support environment for the residents, and by the frequent interactions with residents by case workers and others, both on-site and in various support facilities around Springfield.
Eden Village staff are anticipated to be on site during business hours, but this leaves about three quarters of the time without paid staff. Could the EVII residents be in danger, or could the nearby neighborhood residents have some risk? Like so many of the concerns raised, a key mitigation comes from the resident screening process. The residents themselves should be at very low risk to becoming dangerous and likely no more of a risk than the general population. As for the safety of the EVII residents, the site will be outfitted with secured access only open to the residents themselves and certain staff.
Monitored security cameras will surveil the well-lighted site and staff will be on call. The Gathering Tree also expects to share their contact information with BNA, so that should a Bissett neighbor detect a condition arising after hours that needs attention, a contact can be made. And if that fails, there is always 911, which in the case of the former trailer park, was frequently called. We believe that EVI’s track record thus far indicates that lack of 24/7 on-site staff has not posed an issue.
Long-term viability
Long-time Bissett residents watched for over four decades how the former mobile home park went from a very nice retirement village to a ramshackle site infested with drugs, dilapidated buildings and other dangers. It was reasonable to ask what would keep history from repeating itself with EVII. Could we expect that fund raising would be a permanent feature of the operating plan, since rent is only expected to cover about half of the EVII cost of operation? Will The Gathering Tree have succession planning in place for key staff? It appears that long-term financial stewardship, succession and growth planning, and continuous volunteer engagement are all in place for EVI, and it appears The Gathering Tree is committed to the same for EVII.
Conclusions
BNA representatives feel that The Gathering Tree is genuinely committed to developing a quality community and is in it for the long haul. Based on how rapidly they responded to BNA’s requests for information and engagement – and on their frankness in discussions – they have also demonstrated a commitment to ensure EVII becomes a valued feature of the Bissett neighborhood. As a step in this direction, they recently made the commitment to adopt a portion of Nichols Street for cleanup. This helps our entire neighborhood.
Like any long-term relationship, good relations will take effort and communication from EVII staff and leadership, but also from the BNA, Bissett neighbors and the many professional and volunteer organizations who support The Gathering Tree and the Eden Village communities.
Christ said, “Whatever you do for the least of my brethren, you do it for me.”
Whether one is a Christian or not, helping those in need and making them feel a part of our neighborhoods make for a better, more sharing community, and ultimately a better Springfield. The Bissett neighborhood will soon become an important test case for the Eden Village model and vision, and the BNA is intent on welcoming our new neighbors and partnering with them in this endeavor.