A Cornell — City of Ithaca partnership has received $400,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to assist in addressing the needs and concerns of neighborhoods in Ithaca and to help enhance the quality of life in the city.

The partnership includes Cornell and city of Ithaca community-based organizations and churches, residents and government agencies. To date, more than a dozen community organizations have committed to the project. Patricia Pollak, associate professor of policy analysis and management in the New York State College of Human Ecology at Cornell and the principal investigator/director of the ambitious project, stresses that any organization is welcome to participate.

Almost two dozen faculty members from six colleges at Cornell also are involved, as well as several Cornell administrative offices and at least one department at Ithaca College.

"The Cornell University — Ithaca Flats Community Outreach Partnership Center (COPC) will consist of coordinated campus-community initiatives in several city neighborhoods to implement strategies to address concerns of the community," says Pollak. "We have already met with many organizations and agencies and have worked together to identify initiatives that will address community concerns in the areas of youth and adult job training and skills development, economic development, strategic planning, housing, community leadership, health and safety and environment issues."

Specifically these include program development in the areas of: computer skills training; youth mentoring and development; computer literacy education; employee and tenant rights; neighborhood "livability"; street and park safety; remediation of environmental barriers; economic development; access to medical care; family financial management; remediation of indoor

contamination from lead paint, radon gas, asbestos and biological contaminants in homes and child-care facilities; availability of and access to food in the COPC neighborhoods; and the development of community leadership.

"The COPC award is an important opportunity to strengthen our linkages with the community," says Patsy Brannon, dean of the College of Human Ecology. "Community development is a strong research and outreach effort across a number of colleges at Cornell and an important priority in our college. Pat Pollak's leadership in initiating the HUD application and coordinating the community partnership is to be commended."

In addition to the grant, about $1.5 million in cash and services has been pledged to the project from the partners. Working out of the Southside Community Center, the COPC partners come from Ithaca's Southside, Northside, downtown and Titus Flats neighborhoods. Participating groups include the Cornell administration and faculty, including the colleges of Human Ecology and of Architecture, Art and Planning, along with the Cornell Public Service Center and Cornell Office of Human Resources; Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County; the Southside Community Center; the City of Ithaca Planning Department; the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency; the Ithaca Housing Authority; the Ithaca Youth Bureau; Catholic Charities of the Southern Tier; the Ithaca Police Department; and Cayuga Medical Center.

Pollak says that the grant allows Cornell to further its role as the land grant university of New York, applying research to outreach. Cornell expertise and resources will focus on issues identified by the city's residents, organizations and agencies.

"Ithaca is a wonderful, diverse community of people who offer a wide palette of experiences and expertise that will greatly enhance the success of this partnership," said Cili Shannon, the project coodinator of the HUD project at Cornell.