Neighborhood Revitalization: The Prospect Village Initiative

In 2014, I created and implemented the City of Omaha’s first holistic neighborhood revitalization initiative. Focusing on a single neighborhood (fifty square blocks in North Omaha), the initiative involved the efforts of over thirty organizations working in collaboration with neighborhood leadership. The focus of the initiative was on the delivery of new affordable housing, housing rehabilitation, lead-safe housing, and services ranging from an in-depth analysis of neighborhood history to “common sense parenting”. This initiative received the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency’s (MAPA) Regional Service Award in 2016. Also in 2016, the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) awarded this initiative its National Award of Excellence, one of only twenty projects so honored nationwide.

In addition to the various organizations and individuals involved, this initiative was made possible through the support of the City Planning Department (James Thele, Director) and the staff of the Housing and Community Development Division.

David Thomas, PhD