CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The City of Charlotte is taking another step forward in its efforts to make the Queen City safer with the help of community-based organizations. All of them which have a mission to create stable, supportive environments to help drive out crime and violence.
She Built This City, Digi-Bridge, and Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte are just a few of the groups selected to receive up to $400,000 each as part of the SAFE Charlotte grant. With the money, each organization has a plan to go directly to the neighborhoods that can benefit the most.
Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte has a goal to repair and revitalize at least 30 homes in the Hidden Valley neighborhood.
“Helping the neighborhood reach some of their goals to prevent some of that crime by taking care of the properties -- making it not the most attractive place for people to commit a crime because people care," Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte executive director Beth Morrison said.
Aside from housing, workforce development and youth services are other priorities in helping to prevent violence. Digi-Bridge is a STEAM-based program giving students access and exposure to ideas like engineering and cyber security to provide a more positive focus on their futures.
“Just being able to provide that type of programming definitely helps cut down on that idle time when a lot of violence and misdeeds happen," Digi-Bridge's Lotticia Shefferson said.
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She Built This City also has a similar career pathway focus specifically for women and young girls in the trade business.
“We also know college isn’t for everybody and the trade is a very lucrative pathway also as we think of upward mobility," Marion Pulse said.
With the combinations of these tools feeding more good into the community, the hope is that the negative of violence and crime can eventually be overcome.
Contact Briana Harper at bharper@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.