Residents work to revitalize Lincoln Knolls community

From clearing sidewalks, to cleaning yards, volunteers with AmeriCorps and the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation

are cleaning up vacant properties and blight in the Lincoln Knolls Community.

"This is a quality of life issue, and there are a lot of beautiful homes in all of the Lincoln Knolls area and all around the city," says Second Ward councilman TJ Rodgers. Adding,"We're not going to tolerate abandoned homes and blighted homes not being kept up."

Members of the Lincoln Knolls community remember a time when the neighborhood was thriving. "Every single house was occupied. Every single house was taken care of.

So when i got on Rutledge and McCartney I was happy to be here. That's how beautiful it was," says Rhonda Burt, a member of the Lincoln Knolls community watch.

Since September 2, volunteers have boarded up 29 houses and renovated one vacant home. They have also thrown away 409 50-gallon bags of trash and collected 187 tires. Just a few days ago, they announced their progress thus far, and caught the attention of several officials in the city.

"They're going to be doing it in a systematic way. Step by step and they're going to be working in other neighborhoods across the city as well," says Youngstown mayor John McNally.

The revitalization effort in the Lincoln Knolls area was made possible through a $30,000 grant from the City of Youngstown and as a part of the AmeriCorp REVITALIZE campaign through the Raymond John Wean Foundation. YNDC plans to board up 100 vacant homes and rehabilitate eight more before the end of the year.

But residents and officials stress its up to home-owners to do their part to make the neighborhood a better place. "This is a beautiful community and people have to learn to keep up their own thing. This is something God gave us." says Lincoln Knolls community watch president Truman Green.

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