Youngstown's Neighborhoods

[jay]

The housing crisis in Youngstown has been dire enough to shift the balance between rental properties and owner-occupied dwellings.  A community once known as the "City of Homes," with among the highest rates of home ownership in the nation, now has more renters than home owners.

[kenneyjoe330]

You are quite correct in you assessment of what former neighborhoods were like.  Speaking for myself and those OLD neighbors that still live in Lansingville and agree with me - you are a little off in the Block Watch area of today as far as we are concerned.  The neighbors of quite a few years  back had and took a vested interested in their homes and children.  Today on our street we have renters that do not appear to share those same values of property or family.  It is A CONSTANT BATTLE to even try to maintain some semblance of calm and peace when "things" happen right in front of your face EVERY DAY ! ! !   It is the new people in the neighborhood that do and sell drugs and are into prostitution.  These people are NOT INTERSTED in being good neighbors or REPORTING gun fire or other crimes to police.  We continue to pray to God, to do good and try to avoid evil - I know a lot of those new neighbors in my area probably do not share those tenants.  It is sure true that local government can't make a good neighborhood THAT is the responsibility of people that CARE about where they live and respect their neighbors.  I believe only God can solve that problem which requires a lot more than just prayer. 
I applaud the Mayor for getting more jobs and businesses in the area and promoting Downtown Youngstown but he sure dropped the ball on those of us how LIVE in Youngstown's poor and crime infested neighborhoods.  What good was his 2010 Plan to Lansingville ? 

[northside lurker]

Very good assessment, Westsider. I concur.

Thanks!

[DefendYoungstown]

Very good assessment, Westsider. I concur.

[northside lurker]

'Blockwatches and neighborhood organizations are growing, in part because residents feel they must fill in where local government is not addressing the issues.'

IMO, we're simply replacing what was lost over the last few decades.  Some of the older members of our neighborhood organization still refer to houses on their street by the names of people who have long ago passed on, or moved away from that house.  That tells me there once was an unofficial neighborhood "organization."  This sense of neighborhood, more than local government, was a large part of what kept neighborhoods running and safe.  But, it was taken for granted, and slowly faded away as people moved on.  Now that we're realizing that local government can't be a substitute for "neighborhood," we're creating block-watches and neighborhood organizations, and we're getting to know our neighbors again.

[Youngstownshrimp]

The crack in the wall of the ruling class is growing.  As with the bogus jobs claim, people are beginning to rise up and denounce the ruling class and their stacking public offices with inept figureheads.  Let the revolution continue.

[jay]

Blockwatches and neighborhood organizations are growing, in part because residents feel they must fill in where local government is not addressing the issues.

[jay]

A Renaissance for Whom? Youngstown and its Neighborhoods
cwcs.ysu.edu/resources/renaissance

But by hiring his friends, the Mayor has too often put people without strong qualifications in charge of important local work.  We shouldn't be surprised when they fail to get things done right.  To many, city offices seem to be plagued by ineptitude and deficiency.