Town Meeting Set For Dec. 5: Plan To Attend!
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
Free Copy
OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE HIGH POINT MODEL CITY COMMISSION
November 10,1972
Redevelopment Commission
Is Laying The Groundwork
For NDP’s Implementation
. \'
YOUTH SERVICES counselors (left to right) WENDY WILLIAMS,
LINDA BROCK, and TERRY BOTTS prepare for “You and the Law.”
The Southside Neighborhood De
velopment Plan (NDP) is alive and
well in the Redevelopment Commis
sion.
Originally proposed to begin July
1, the NDP — a federal grant aimed
at improving the conditions of the
Southside neighborhood — has ex
perienced many delays in getting un
der way.
The sum of $629,250 has been
made available to High Point for
Southside, one of five sub-neighbor
hoods in the Model Cities target area,
under the new federal funding tech
nique called NDP. Money coming to
cities under NDP is administered by
Youth Services’ Youthful Counselors
Help Teenagers Get Back On Their Feet
“You’ve got to become involved with
every kid; otherwise there’s no trust,
and the kid thinks he’s just another
t y 99
case.
These words from counselor Wendy
Williams of Youth Services Bureau
sum up the staffs commitment to
every young person who becomes
their client.
Aimed primarily at the prevention
of juvenile delinquency, Youth Serv
ices Bureau works closely with the
city schools, courts, and parents of
troubled teenagers to help them solve
problems before these young people
become involved in the juvenile jus
tice system.
Youth Services Bureau was begun
in August as part of Model Cities’
Third Action Year Plan. The agency
is funded jointly by Model Cities and
the Law Enforcement Assistance Ad
ministration under the U.S. Depart
ment of Justice.
Its office is located at 205 West
wood Avenue, on the comer of N.
Elm Street. The oldest member of its
staff is age 25.
He is Edgar Timberlake, the pro
ject’s director and former juvenile
counselor in the 18th Judicial Court
here.
Timberlake, along with Ms. Wil
liams, Terry Botts and Linda Brock,
comprise the counseling staff which
hopes to reach 250 youths during their
first year in operation.
So far, they are pleased with the
progress they have made in estab
lishing themselves in the community.
REFERRALS
“We’re doing far better than I an
ticipated we’d be at this stage,” says
assistant director Terry Botts. “We’ve
been getting referrals from everyone
middle, upper, lower classes,
schools, the police, the courts, par
ents . . . Principals and guidance
counselors, for example, call us and
ask us to handle a particular case.”
Although the Bureau’s heaviest con
centration is on personal counseling of
young people in and out of its office,
it has set up a number of programs
geared at helping kids get back on
their feet emotionally and fit back into
society.
One is a tutorial program reac
tivated by Ms. Botts at High Point
College, where she started it while
in school there. The program is co
ordinated on campus by Bill Cope, a
sociology instructor, and George Jones
For Informal Discussion
and Debbie Stamper, students.
At present 37 college students serve
as tutors for Youth Services Bureau
clients on a one-to-one basis, and more
are being recruited. Each tutor and
his student spend a minimum of two
hours a week together, and the agency
encourages much more time.
A close communication between the
classroom teacher and the tutor is also
stressed. And beyond helping the teen
ager with academic problems, the tu
tors also are their friends.
“We think the friendship aspect is
equally important,” said Ms. Botts.
“A lot of kids we deal with have
emotional and self-concept problems.
(Continued on Page 2)
Pre-Commission Meet Set
Model City Commissioners and
Model Neighborhood residents now
have one more chance to get together,
discuss problems, air grievances, and
talk about projects on which decisions
must be made.
The opportunity is coming in the
form of a “pre-Commission” meeting,
to be held exactly one week prior to
the regular monthly Model City Com
mission meeting.
The first of these open meetings was
held Thursday, October 26, in Fourth
Street Library. Anticipating the reg
ular Commission meeting of Novem
ber 2, a group of about 35 residents,
new and old Commissioners, and
Model Cities staff members discussed
matters of interest in the Model Cities
process.
At this time, anyone with a com
plaint or suggestion can bring it be-
the local Redevelopment Commission,
the same as conventional Urban Re
newal projects.
Plans for the use of the first year’s
funds were dravra up in the spring
and submitted to the U. S. Depart
ment of Housing and Urban Develop
ment. Final approval came this sum
mer.
According to Kenneth Martin, Re
development director, sufficient funds
finally arrived October 18 from Wash
ington to proceed with the Southside
Neighborhood Development Plan.
The seemingly slow progress of
work on the Southside renewal pro
ject has caused some concern on the
part of Thomas O. Moore, chairman
of the Southside NDP Resident Re
view Committee. The committee,
made up of Model City Commission
ers from the Southside and three
members-at-large, set priorities for
the spending of the NDP grant and
helped steer the direction of the plan.
“It’s frustrating,” he said. “The NDP
appears to be at a stall, and I should
think an unexplained stall.” He added
that neither he nor his committee
men knew the nature of the hold-up.
On the other hand, Martin explains
that groundwork is being laid to pre
pare for the actual construction which
will take place. He warns, “Physical
improvements can’t be expected just
to drop in overnight.”
The area of concentration for the
first year lies in the west central por
tion of the neighborhood. Work out
lined in the plans include the fol-
(Continued on Page 2)
fore the group in an informal setting.
No business can be formally acted
upon, as the Commission is not in
session.
The new pre-Commission meetings
grew out of a concern that at reg
ular Commission sessions, a strict
agenda is followed which supposedly
allows little time for neighborhood
persons to comment or enter into dis
cussion. Efforts are being made to con
duct the added meetings in an un
hurried, unstructured fashion.
Citizens from all over the city are
welcome to attend and to participate
in these, and all other Model Cities
meetings.
The Model City Commission meets
the first Thursday of each month at
7:30 p.m. in the City-County Build
ing. The next pre-Commission forum
will take place Thursday, Nov. 30.
Boxing Club
Story Page 4
DANIEL CREFT of 509-F E. Com
merce Street, left, and DON TAYI.OR
of 607 Carter Street, work out at the
Boxing Club gym.