Jackson officials reflect on success of Love Your Block

By KATE COIL

TT&C Assistant Editor

As the application period for a new round of grants opens, officials in Jackson are reflecting on how their participation in the Love Your Block grant program served as a catalyst to create a new city department, build community, and beautify and repair aging homes and neighborhoods. 

Awarded through Bloomberg Philanthropies and Johns Hopkins University Cities of Service, Love Your Block is a two-year civic engagement program that brings city leaders and residents together to strengthen neighborhoods, one block at a time. Jackson was one of eight cities selected for the 2022-23 cohort, receiving $100,000 and aid from an AmeriCorps Vista member to establish the program. 

One of the initial goals the city had for the grant program was to turn it into a sustainable force in the community, long after the initial funding was exhausting. Love Your Block was folded into Jackson’s Neighborhood Services Department, a newly created city department that also offers resources to neighborhood associations, housing programs, and Keep Jackson Beautiful.     

Elvia Trejo is director of the department, having joined the city staff during the second phase of the grant. She said participation in the program served as a catalyst for showing how small actions and small budgets can still have a big impact. 

“The program showed us how much we can do with a smaller budget,” Trejo said. “A lot of the time, cities don’t want to take on a program like this because of how much it is going to cost them. Our budget is $30,000 a year to [repair] around 12 homes. It taught us what we can do with $2,000 per home and how to bring in more community to help. We have been gifted supplies from Black and Decker and Lowe’s. While we were out in the community encouraging people to help themselves and volunteer, it also taught us there are other businesses wanting to help. They’ve donated plants, ladders, and paint.”  

Now administered in-house by the city, the Love Your Block program is still helping local homeowners make small improvements that may make the difference to keep a resident safely in their home. 

“The idea is to stop problems at level one rather than wait until a house is unlivable,” Trejo said. “A lot of our residents struggle with doors that won’t close or windows that let the elements in. When we come in and fix that, it stops the domino effect. The program has evolved into the focus of keeping our residents safe, dry, and warm. We work on aesthetic issues as well.” 

Trejo said home repairs often have the consequence of fueling the desires of neighbors to “keep up with the Jones’.” 

“Even smaller scale things like planting flowers out front can have a big impact,” she said. “We haven’t been to a home repair yet where the neighbors didn’t also start coming out and picking up trash outside, removing old things from their porch, and taking advantage of the Bulk 311 pickups we schedule. The neighbors will say ‘Well, Miss Susie is getting her house painted. We definitely need to start cleaning up.’ I like to personally drive around the streets where we have completed projects to see how our residents and their homes are doing. I can testify the litter has decreased dramatically. We had one street in East Jackson that was notorious for being covered in trash, and now the street is still clean even though we haven’t had a crew out there in six months.” 

Love Your Block also helped Jackson officials identify gaps in citizen needs and create programs unique to their community. One of those is the mobile tool shed, a tool lending service. 

“We have people rent out tools two or three times a week,” Trejo said. “A lot of people can’t afford to buy a pressure washer or a tool they may only need to use once. However, it can also be too expensive to hire    a company. Our most popular tool is a pressure washer because a lot of our walkways have never been cleaned. When it rains, those unwashed walkways can get slippery, which can mean an elderly resident can slip and wind up in the hospital. Sometimes, a pressure washer or the tools needed to fix a porch railing can make a a house safe.  

The program has also been a hit with younger homeowners and families who want to do their own repairs or DIY projects. 

“They make too much to qualify for our programs but not enough to hire someone,” she said. “We see so many residents who go on YouTube to learn how to fix their own bathroom and just need to borrow these tools. Word has really gotten around.” 

Another program co-hosted by Jackson Mayor Scott Conger and the Neighborhood Services Division is Scott’s Strolls. During these events, Mayor Conger and city department heads take a stroll down the block with neighbors to discuss local issues, share resources, and set future goals for the community. 

“We walk with the residents, and they tell us the issues they are having on the streets whether that is paving or infrastructure,” Trejo said. “It’s like a town hall, but more modern. We get to know them, and they get to know each other. It’s easy to say go to a website or call a number, but citizens don’t always understand how to navigate that. If they can match a name to a face and a face to a title, they can share accurate information. You have to really get to know your community members and talk to them. A lot of folks think of government as something they see on TV or hear on the radio, but they should be able to access us.” 

The department also launched a lawn care assistance program, which provides free mowing assistance to residents in need, particularly seniors and those with disabilities, through local volunteers. The program was the result of repeated codes violations and looking into why citizens needed help. 

“The help with their lawn can mean they don’t wind up in environmental court with more bills and more tickets,” Trejo said. “I had a young woman who told us her husband had passed away six weeks ago, so it was the first time she was taking care of everything. She just needed help right then while she learned to manage everything.” 

The Neighborhood Services Department has also partnered with the Jackson Area Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependency (JACOA) to host a community refrigerator. The full-sized fridges are open 24/7 with local restaurants donating catering orders that were never picked up or other food items, such as water bottles and sandwiches. 

Trejo said the fridge is often patronized by students getting off at the nearby bus stop, young families, seniors, and the unhoused population. Sometimes, picking up a meal at the community fridge can also bridge a gap for a family or individual having to choose between buying food and paying rent or utilities.  

“We welcome any resident into our office and ask what resources they need,” she said. “We may not have all of those resources in house, but we can connect them to other organizations in the community. That is our main goal at Neighborhood Services and something Love Your Block has taught me-- that even if we can’t help you ourselves, we can be a bridge between resources.” 

By starting small, Trejo said the initial Love Your Block program has transformed into something bigger than many imagined.  

“We kept dreaming a little bit bigger,” she said. “It grew because we wanted to help people, and we learned new ways we could help people. We have amazing support from our council and mayor. We have more and more residents turning up to volunteer. We tell our residents this is their department.” 

One side effect of the program is that it is bringing Jackson residents into areas of the city they don’t normally venture. Trejo said volunteers get a chance to connect with each other, particularly in a time when many people are losing connection in their own neighborhoods. 

“We never want our residents to feel like the volunteers are at their home on a field trip,” she said. “We don’t want them to feel they are getting used. We prep our volunteers because we want them to know these are real people. This is real life and you may not know someone’s struggle or story. We want our residents to feel safe. We also want to build the community aspect of it. Sometimes, people start talking and realize they know each other's relatives.” 

Trejo said residents – even those who have not received services through the program – said the face-to-face interaction between government and citizens is the best part of the program. 

“Connecting human to human is valuable,” she said. “They really feel like we care for them. We have become the first point of contact for government for many of them. Even on our projects, we tell our residents and homeowners they are the boss; they are telling the contractors what to do. If you see they are painting something the wrong color, you say something. This is your home. Volunteers go back to their homes, but residents have to live with whatever repairs we do. It makes people feel they are important and that they matter. At the end of the day, we are all Jacksonians and we want them to feel they matter.” 

Municipalities who wish to participate in the latest Love Your Block grant round must apply by June 1, 2026. Learn more about the program or submit your application on the Love Your Block website.