City
tackles race issues
November 30, 2004
By JOE GORMAN
YOUNGSTOWN - Planners for the city's 2010 master plan will be holding a
second forum tonight on race relations in the city and are working toward
the plan's January unveiling.
The forum will run from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at Kilcawley Center on the campus of
Youngstown State University. It also will be televised on WNEO Channel 45
and broadcast on 88.5 WYSU-FM.
This is the second forum on race relations that planners have held. An
earlier forum was held in September.
Community Development Director Jay Williams, who will serve as moderator for
the forum, said he hopes to set some practical goals that can be achieved
soon after the forum.
"I want to move from talk to action,'' Williams said. "I want a realistic
goal that can be achieved in a realistic period of time.''
Williams said he hopes to reach a consensus on the idea of forming small
groups of citizens who can discuss solutions to the race and other problems
in the city. He said other cities used such groups to their advantage in
addressing problems.
"That's something in my mind that's practical and achievable,'' Williams
said.
Williams also said he wants to dispel the notion from some that messages or
advice from outsiders is wrong.
William D'Avignon, head of the city planning department, said both forums
were built into the planning process, and while they are separate from the
master plan, planners thought that race was "a stumbling block for
progress.''
D'Avignon also said work is progressing on forming the master plan, which is
expected to be unveiled in late January. Planners had earlier met 11 times
in various city neighborhoods to get input from residents on what planners
should focus on. The primary message that came out of those meetings was
that residents were upset about unsightly properties as well as a lack of
accountability by city officials in dealing with problems.
The master plan is being put together by YSU and city officials.
The initial sessions stated planners must work under the following
assumptions: Youngstown is a midsized city; its image and quality of life
must be improved; and residents and officials need to act.
D'Avignon said city planners also have been working on future land use
recommendations that may be incorporated into the plan. After that is
completed, planners will consult with different city departments before
taking the proposed plan to different community groups to get their input.
"We want to use them as a sounding board,'' D'Avignon said.
The plan will make a difference, D'Avignon said.
"It's going to be a different city,'' D'Avignon said. |