O.N.D. FAQ's
Is there
a crime watch in my area?
Is there a neighborhood organization
in my area?
How
do I start a neighborhood organization?
How
do I organize a block party?
How
do I get people to join my neighborhood organization?
How
do I get officials to come and speak at my Neighborhood
Organization Meetings?
Who
should I get to come and speak at my meetings?
How
can the Office of Neighborhood Development help my Neighborhood
Organization?
Who
can I call about quality of life issues in my neighborhood?
How
do I get graffiti cleaned up in my neighborhood?
How
do I organize a neighborhood cleanup?
Where
is a good place for my neighborhood organization to meet?
How
do I contact the Office of Neighborhood Development?
What
is Reading Beautification Inc.?
What
is the Office of Neighborhood Development?
Where
is the Office of Neighborhood Development located?
Where
and when does the neighborhood Organization meet in my
neighborhood?
What
do Neighborhood Organizations do?
What
is the Great American Cleanup?
What
is the Group Workcamps Project?
What
is adopt-a-spot?
How
can I or my business adopt a spot to clean up?
How
can I volunteer for Reading Beautification Inc./Office
of Neighborhood Development Projects?
Is
there a crime watch in my area?
Click Here for What
Neighborhood Organization Exists in my area. (Adobe PDF)
Is there a neighborhood
organization in my area?
Click
Here for What Neighborhood Organization Exists in
my area. (Adobe PDF)
How do I start a neighborhood
organization?
It
can be as simple as getting a group of concerned community
members together and meeting then reaching out to neighbors
via word-of-mouth, flyers, etc. Eventually you may want
to reach out to City Hall as well to have important officials
speak at your meetings and show concern for your particular
neighborhood. The Office of Neighborhood Development can
help you with any aspect of Neighborhood Organization
Development. Give them a call at (610) 655-6277 for information.
How do I organize a block party?
Before
you begin, make sure you have a commitment from enough
volunteers from your neighborhood who are willing to be
responsible for a specific task such as food preparation,
coordinating donations, coordinating entertainment, etc.
Also, make sure to try to get neighborhood entities such
as local businesses and churches involved in the block
party by perhaps providing refreshments or other assistance.
You must also be sure to get in touch with City Hall to
make sure you have the correct permits for the event.
Search the City website or contact the Office of Neighborhood
Development at (610) 655-6277 for answers to your questions.
How do I get people to join my neighborhood
organization?
Word-of-Mouth
has always been an effective method of spreading information,
you may want to consider advertising via flyers or other
media depending on your budget. Contact the Office of
Neighborhood Development at (610) 655-6277 for more answers
to your questions.
How do I get officials to come
and speak at my Neighborhood Organization Meetings?
Give
them a call or e-mail them. Most Public Officials’
contact information is listed on city and other governmental
sites. The Office of Neighborhood Development may also
be able to help you with this by contacting them for you.
Contact the Office of Neighborhood Development at (610)
655-6277
Who should I get to come and
speak at my meetings?
That
depends on what the objective and topic of your meeting.
For instance, if your neighborhood is having a lot of
problems with quality of life issues, you may want to
invite someone from code services to speak at your meeting.
If your main topic of the meeting is crime in your neighborhood,
it may be wise to invite someone from the police department.
People running for public offices are also a good choice
for speaking at meetings, it gives the people in your
neighborhood to learn the policies of individuals from
a first-hand experience in speaking with them. This will
give them an opportunity to be better-prepared when making
decisions on election day, and furthermore encourage them
to get out and vote.
How can the Office of Neighborhood
Development help my Neighborhood Organization?
The
Office of Neighborhood Development is a city entity and
a resource for neighborhood organizations with connections
to nearly every department of the city. We are happy to
help with any aspect of neighborhood improvement from
helping to create and improve neighborhood organizations
to helping better the appearance of neighborhoods through
graffiti removal and cleanups. Contact the Office of Neighborhood
Development at (610) 655-6277 for more information.
Who
can I call about quality of life issues in my neighborhood?
To
best resolve quality of life issues, contact the Office
of Neighborhood Development at (610) 655-6277, Code Services
(610) 655-4382, or the Reading Police Department at (610)
655-6241 depending on the severity and urgency of the
disturbance.
How do I get graffiti cleaned
up in my neighborhood?
You
may contact the Reading Beautification Inc./Office of
Neighborhood Development at (610) 655-6277
to report graffiti and request assistance via applying
for a graffiti kit to organize a neighborhood graffiti
cleanup yourself or request to have a graffiti removal
team come to your neighborhood.
How
do I organize a neighborhood cleanup?
Before
you begin, make sure you have a commitment from enough
volunteers from your neighborhood who are willing to be
responsible for a specific task. Then, You may contact
the Reading Beautification Inc./Office of Neighborhood
Development at (610) 655-6277 to report graffiti and request
assistance via applying for a graffiti kit to organize
a neighborhood graffiti cleanup yourself or request to
have a graffiti removal team come to your neighborhood.
Where is a good place for my
neighborhood organization to meet?
Most
neighborhood organizations request permission from local
entities such as churches, schools, apartment complexes,
and businesses to hold their meetings in their building.
How do I contact the Office
of Neighborhood Development?
You
can contact them via phone at (610) 655-6277 or e-mail
Manager Wayne Cockrell at wayne.cockrell@readingpa.org.
What is Reading Beautification
Inc.?
Reading
Beautification Inc. is a non-profit organization in association
with the Office of Neighborhood Development. RBI organizes
events such as the Great American Cleanup and does a lot
of graffiti removal work.
What is the Office of Neighborhood
Development?
The
Office of Neighborhood Development is a city entity and
a resource for neighborhood organizations with connections
to nearly every department of the city. We are happy to
help with any aspect of neighborhood improvement from
helping to create and improve neighborhood organizations
to helping better the appearance of neighborhoods through
graffiti removal and cleanups. Contact the Office of Neighborhood
Development at (610) 655-6277 for more information.
Where is the Office of Neighborhood
Development located?
Our
offices are located at the 11th & Pike Recreation
Center, however we do have a City Hall mailing address
at 815 Washington St., Reading, P.A. 19601.
Where and when does the neighborhood
Organization meet in my neighborhood?
You
can find out whether or not a neighborhood organization
exists in your area and where and when they meet by clicking
on Neighborhood Organizations under the Office of Neighborhood
Development link on the city’s web page or you may
contact the Office of Neighborhood Development directly
by calling (610) 655-6277.
What do Neighborhood Organizations
do?
Neighborhood
Organizations do a wide variety of things, their main
objective being trying to improve their neighborhoods.
They range from crime watches to Neighborhood Associations
that deal with architectural preservation within their
neighborhoods. They are often also responsible for organizing
events like block parties and neighborhood meetings. You
can find out whether or not a neighborhood organization
exists in your area and where and when they meet by clicking
on Neighborhood Organizations under the Office of Neighborhood
Development link on the city’s web page or you may
contact the Office of Neighborhood Development directly
by calling (610) 655-6277.
What is the Great American
Cleanup?
Reading
Beautification, Inc. (a non-profit organization) is organizing
its 14th Annual Great American Cleanup on Saturday, April
21, 2006. About 1,500 volunteers will collect tons of
litter and trash from the city streets and public spaces.
Last year, over 70 tons of trash was removed from the
city.
What is the Group Workcamps
Project?
Teenagers
and adult sponsors from the Group Workcamps foundation
will be coming to Reading and attempting to make a difference
by repairing homes for elderly, disabled, and low-income
residents. During their weeklong visit, about 80 residents
will have improvements made to their homes. Among the
work to be done are constructing of wheelchair ramps and
porches, interior and exterior painting, weatherization,
and other minor home repairs. Five young people with the
supervision of at least one adult leader will do the work
at each home. The Group Workcamps Foundation is an organization
that recruits an average of about 400 teen and adult participants
from the Christian-faith community each year. RBI/OND
will be working with the foundation to prepare for the
arrival of the volunteers.
What is adopt-a-spot?
The
RBI program is patterned after the State Adopt-A Highway
Program. Participants include schools, non-profit organizations,
clubs, businesses, individuals, senior and youth groups,
and neighborhood action groups. If you are interested
in adopting a city street, playground, vacant lot, etc.,
Please call Reading Beautification at (610) 655-6277.
How can I or my business adopt
a spot to clean up?
If
you are interested in adopting a city street, playground,
vacant lot, etc., Please call Reading Beautification at
(610) 655-6277.
How can I volunteer for Reading
Beautification Inc./Office of Neighborhood Development
Projects?
Please
look at the city’s website under Office of Neighborhood
Development for a list of our current projects and to
fill out online volunteer forms or please call Reading
Beautification Inc./The Office of Neighborhood Development
at (610) 655-6277.
