Roosevelt Park Neigh. Assoc. - Grandville Ave. Renovation Project

This project involved restoration of the red brick Engine House No. 12 in the center of the Roosevelt Park Neighborhood. The building had been purchased for $1 by the Hispanic Center of Western Michigan to serve the Hispanic newcomers arriving in West Michigan. Deteriorating conditions of the building forced the organization to move out in 1998. The Roosevelt Park Neighborhood Association has offered to head up the capital campaign to restore the old firehouse and make it a welcoming haven for the Hispanic community, offering second-floor offices to provide client services and a large, open, ground-floor community space for all residents of all ages. The catalyst grant will be used for historic building renovation of the firehouse/community center.

Highlights:

• The Hispanic center is coming back to its original place. It was originally in the firehouse, but was relocated to a smaller space due to dilapidation. It’s all positive, not only for the kids, but the neighborhood as well. It’s not only for Hispanic kids, and not just a Hispanic Center; it is a multicultural program.
• The Cool Cities designation is important to the Roosevelt Park Neighborhood for marketing. It allowed the group to leverage funding for the catalyst project and another project. 
• As stated by Mary Angelo, “Some things you can’t measure. We can’t measure it, but that does not diminish the effect and importance of having done the project. Just because you can’t put numbers to something doesn’t mean that at some point common sense can’t be taken into consideration in determining the importance of something like Cool Cities.” 
• Roosevelt Park Neighborhood Association reported in 2006:
  • We are encouraging mixed-use structures in our neighborhood. Last year (2005) two dilapidated buildings were restored, each with two or more apartments on the second floor over lower-floor businesses.
  • We believe that the designation alone has helped to elevate the stature of our neighborhood, both in the eyes of our residents and also city-wide.
  • We spent several years working with MDOT to bring streetscaping to Grandville Avenue, and our Cool Cities designation seemed to propel that process.
  • “Because of the Cool Cities Neighborhood Award Designation, we have done a better job of opening our minds to broader collaborations and a grander vision for the future of our neighborhood.” - Mary Angelo, award designee contact