Bringing Fort Greene and Clinton Hill Together
Posted on 21. Jan, 2010 by Marcos Salazar in Agents of Change
The Fort Greene Association
FGA Board members decorate Fowler's Square for the Holidays.
On the “About” section of The Fort Greene Association’s website, the first paragraph begins with, “The Fort Greene Association is an inclusive organization, concerned about the needs of all residents.” To anyone who attended the Fort Greene Association holiday party in December, this inclusiveness was quickly apparent. As you walked through the crowded house, every type of person from every background you could think of was laughing, eating, drinking, and singing together. This incredible level of diversity is one of the most remarkable qualities about living in The Hill and is at the heart of what the Fort Greene Association and the Society for Clinton Hill seek to support and serve.
“This is a mixed neighborhood: mixed race, mixed income, mixed on every level,” says Paul Palazzo, the current chair of FGA. “The people of Fort Greene and organizations like the Fort Greene Association and Society for Clinton Hill have always recognized the value of this neighborhood. In the 1970s, this neighborhood was redlined. They wanted to tear it down. The zoning was developed that way – to tear down Fort Greene and Clinton Hill. But the neighborhood recognized the value and got it landmarked. Later they changed the zoning of the area. Today, this area is an amazing microcosm of how a mixed neighborhood can work.”
The FGA and the Society have both been a strong opponent to the Ratner plan for Atlantic Yards.
Originally named the Fort Greene Landmarks Preservation Committee, The Fort Greene Association was formed in 1973 to preserve the distinctive 19th Century architectural heritage of Fort Greene, including the Olmsted and Vaux-designed Fort Greene Park and Stanford White’s Prison Ship Martyrs Memorial. Through the diligent efforts of the late Herbert Scott-Gibson, founder of The Fort Greene Landmarks Preservation Committee, and other early members, in 1978 both BAM and the Fort Greene Historic Districts were accorded landmark status by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Along with the Historic District of Clinton Hill, this downtown Brooklyn area is one of the largest intact remnants of a 19th Century city in New York State and the nation. In 1994 the Fort Greene Landmarks Preservation Committee was changed to the Fort Greene Association upon federal recognition as a non-profit organization.
Over time, the mission of the FGA has evolved to address many of the broader issues concerning the diverse community. Working together with elected officials, city agencies and commissions and other community organizations, the FGA has given area residents a voice concerning larger issues that affect the neighborhood. “We see the Fort Greene Association as an organization that gets input from the neighborhood and other organizations and acts as a conduit that provides valuable information for people to use. It also serves to connect people so that the great energy in this area can be used to better the community.”
Society for Clinton Hill
Founded more than 30 years ago, the Society For Clinton Hill was also originally a landmark organization formed to enhance and preserve one of Brooklyn’s most beautiful and historic neighborhoods. Throughout its history, the organization’s efforts have been many and varied such as sponsoring educational sessions on topics ranging from creating shade gardens to working within City Codes to preserve historic architecture; monitoring large development projects to ensure their viability and service to the community; supporting local institutions such as Pratt, St. Joseph’s and the Clinton Hill Library; working to strengthen our community through social and cultural events, and much more. The Society for Clinton Hill also organizes its neighborhood House Tour as well as the community Halloween Party each year.
From Top L Joe Gutleber former FGA Board Member and current Board members Roslyn Huebener, Richard Norton, Mary Priebe, Susan Butler, Paul Palazzo, Naomi Dickerson, and Fred Lasker. Each year the FGA throws a neighborhood bash where hundreds of Neighbors come to meet and celebrate.
In 2010 the Society for Clinton Hill seeks to expand its reach. Says current president David Haberer: “We started out as a landmark group to try and preserve the neighborhood, but with the new board as of two years ago, we are seeing ourselves as a bigger community organization that goes beyond the House Tours and the Halloween Party. We want to make ourselves an even more important part of the neighborhood and outlet for the whole community.”
The Society for Clinton Hill has plans to start building the infrastructure to do just that. “We are redoing our bylaws to move away from a board-run organization to one that is set up with committees involved with issues and concerns that are important to people in the neighborhood. In addition, we also want to see how we can get more people involved,” explains Haberer. “To do this, we are looking to have a spring picnic to welcome new comers and families with children. We want to make the organization more family friendly. Lastly, we are gearing up for our next house tour to make that an even bigger success.”
Crime has become a major issue in the neighborhood and Haberer says it will be something they will be working on in the coming year. “We are concerned with increased crime in the area and it was Suzanne Debrango and I who went to Tish James’s office to raise the question about things like the spike in cars getting broken into. We were part of Tish’s getting a public safety task force together and we will be closely watching the progress of this.”
The FGA is also looking to expand its reach to insure that more area residents have a voice concerning larger issues that affect the neighborhood, “We want to continue reaching out further into the community – across the park into areas of the neighborhood that are less serviced and to break down barriers and try to get services they need and want,” says Palazzo.
The FGA is also trying to adapt to a changing demographic coming into the area. “We are finding that the whole organizational base is changing and is now much younger and with younger families and we want to include those groups of people in the area. Lastly, we recently did a survey and one of the issues more and more people are interested in is the food coop and Community Supported Agriculture/CSA. People want to know about food and issues with supermarkets and healthy food options and this will be one of our major focuses this year. “
The upcoming year looks like a big one for both associations which will be looking to expand their ability to make a positive impact on the lives of residents. It also offers an opportunity to coordinate efforts says Haberer. “We have a good relationship with the Fort Greene Association and will be working with other groups to make our community better in 2010.”
Both organizations are vital for the preservation and progress of our community, so if you are not a member of the Fort Greene Association or the Society for Clinton Hill — on either side of Vanderbilt Avenue – please visit www.HistoricFortGreene.org or www.SocietyforClintonHill.org and join.
