PROJECTS
Buffalo Rd. Corridor Home Improvements
In the fall of 2017, the Eastside Grassroots Coalition applied for a Neighborhood Assistance Program, Special Priorities Program based on a tax-credit donation from Northwest Savings Bank in the amount of $25,000. The project is aimed at mitigating blight along the Buffalo Road Corridor in our neighborhood, and the target area encompasses the two blocks north and south of Buffalo Road from Pennsylvania Avenue to McClelland Avenue.
Awarded the full amount of the project via tax-credits in December 2017, the project kicked off in January 2018. The project is designed to give micro grants of up to $5000 to homeowners in need of outer home repairs in the target area, with a minimum of 5 homeowners receiving assistance. An application process was opened, and applications were sent to all homes within the target area. Applicants must meet certain income restrictions, demonstrate the need for repairs, have an ability to pay a 10% cash match of the amount awarded to them, and fulfill other requirements.
In April of 2018, a selection committee convened to evaluate the applications and select the first round of homes to receive assistance with outer home repairs. After careful review of all applications, six homeowners were chosen to receive assistance: Doug Marlowe, Joan Frew, Gerard Pietrasiewicz, M. Victor Kisiel, James McNeil, and Thaddeus Fryczynski. In May 2018, contractors were contacted about submitting bid proposals to complete the needed work on the selected homes. We are currently awaiting bid proposals before selecting contractors to begin work on the homes. All repair work will be completed by the end of August 2018.
Additionally, in May 2018, the EGC was awarded an additional $25,000 from the Erie County Gaming Revenue Association to double the projects efforts. This second round of funding will allow a minimum of 5 additional homeowners to receive grant money to perform outer home repairs. A second application is now open until August 15, 2018, and all repair work for the second round of homes will be completed by November 2018. If you are interested in the program or know someone who is, please contact us today to receive an application.
The hope of this project is to mitigate blight affecting our community, and cause a visible change in the appearance of our neighborhood. This could potentially lead to greater investments from both businesses and local government. In addition, it can help instill a sense of pride in all residents of the neighborhood that we at the Eastside Grassroots Coalition feel every day.
If you would like to apply for assistance, simply fill out an application and return it to the House of Mercy located at 2005 Woodlawn Ave.
Environmental Justice - Erie Coke Plant
One concern we have repeatedly heard from neighbors involves the Erie Coke Plant and the many violations they have had from the PA Department of Environment Protection (DEP), as well as raids from the FBI. Neighbors are concerned about the effects of the toxic chemicals leaked into the atmosphere when these violations occur, and how they affect the health of our residents.
In order to address these concerns, we are working with many community organizations such as Our Air, Our Water, Our Rights, the Sierra Club, the Benedictine's for Peace, and many more. Together we reached out to the state DEP and have formed a stakeholders committee to discuss the Erie Coke Plant's current permit renewal and our concerns about it.
We are demanding transparency about all past violations, exactly what was released into the air and when, what is monitored already compared to what we want to see monitored, and how we can hold Erie Coke accountable. Thus far, Erie Coke has cooperated in giving us some of the information we seek, including allowing a tour of their facility to understand the processes and byproducts released into the air.
We are still waiting for a comprehensive list of past violations and complaints from the DEP. We are also working with the county and state health departments, as well as the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to determine how to conduct a health assessment of the residents and effects of pollution from Erie Coke.
We have also began discussion on other industrial sites in our area and how they may be affecting our health, such as BASF. Our goal is to fight for Environmental Justice for our residents, a population that has historically been dismissed and taken advantage of when it comes to pollution. We want to know how this long term exposure to chemicals from nearby sites affects their health, and what we can do to prevent harm. We will continue to pursue the answers we seek and will not support a permit renewal for Erie Coke until we are satisfied our residents' health is protected.
If you ever notice an industrial site such as Erie Coke or BASF emitting smoke or odor that concerns you, whether it is black smoke coming out of a stack, smog rolling through the street, or an offensive odor in your area, take a picture and note the date and time of the incident.
Follow this link to report what you saw to the DEP either online or by phone. This helps us in our fight for Environmental Justice and holding these corporations accountable.
Nick Warren
Past Projects
