advocacy

HSC believes that to best respond to our communities needs, we need to be engaged in local advocacy efforts, working side by side with community leaders and grassroots activists. Therefore, our work is informed by deep partnerships with local organizers, activists, direct service providers, and housing developers that work to give local residents a “place at the table” in land-use decision making. Working with city agencies, elected officials, and local stakeholders, we partner on campaigns and policies that promote sustainable and equitable community development. This ensures that all NYC communities have access to well-designed public spaces in their neighborhoods.

HSC currently participates in the O.U.R. Waterfront Coalition, United Neighbors to Revitalize Allen & Pike, the Sara D. Roosevelt Park Coalition, the Chinatown Working Group, the Immigrants and Parks Collaborative, and Go Green Lower East Side.

Local Spokes: The Lower East Side/Chinatown Bicycling Coalition

HSC is one of nine organizations that founded the Local Spokes. Started in early 2011, Local Spokes seeks to engage local residents to envision the future of and understand various community perspectives on bicycling in Chinatown and the Lower East Side. Coalition work includes multilingual outreach and a youth ambassadors program.

Links and Downloads:

Local Spokes

Chinatown Working Group

HSC Co-Chairs the Parks, Open Space, and Recreation Working Team of the Chinatown Working Group (CWG). CWG is a community-based planning initiative on the future of Chinatown in New York City. CWG’s goal is to support the community’s residents, workers, businesses and visitors of Chinatown, and its members include Chinatown’s stakeholders – representatives of community groups and Community Boards 1, 2 and 3.

CWG’s focus is on issues of shared concern throughout Chinatown, including but not limited to affordability, preservation, revitalization, and the social and economic well being of families, seniors and youth.

CWG’s objective is to articulate common goals for Chinatown’s future with consideration for its impact on adjacent New York City communities, and to formulate and work with New York City agencies to implement a precise, comprehensive, meaningful, timely and broadly supported community-based plan.

Links and Downloads:

CWG Homepage: http://www.chinatownworkinggroup.org

Immigrants and Parks Collaborative

The Immigrants and Parks Collaborative works to ensure that our city’s open spaces are democratic, representative of neighbors’ wants and needs, and serve as relevant resources for all New Yorkers. It consists of seven vibrant organizations working in parks throughout the city. Committed to fueling locally driven, immigrant-led community development by creating opportunities for civic engagement in neighborhood parks, the Collaborative encourages local government, institutions, and organizations to work together to use parks in creative ways for inclusive community development and park improvements.

As part of the Collaborative, HSC has advocated for increasing language access and community education in the capital design process of parks for immigrant communities citywide. On a local level, HSC has developed a close partnership with Asian Americans for Equality to increase immigrant access to parks and to bring about community-led park improvements.

Links and Downloads:

Immigrants and Parks Website: http://www.immigrantsparks.org