City leaders host third North neighborhood meeting

City leaders hosted their third meeting with North neighborhood residents Tuesday night at Derby Ridge Elementary School.

The third meeting was designed for residents to come up with one priority that they could all agree on that needed to be fixed, or added in their neighborhood.

The top five concerns residents said they needed or lacked were having better affordable housing, more community resources, increased police presence, more jobs and more city services.

Among the five, community resources was overwhelming voted as a priority that residents said they wanted to have in the next 6-12 months.

Although residents understand that getting a recreation building will take some time, taking proactive steps, like having more youth programs and support from families to volunteer was something that north Columbia resident Marcel Lambert was excited about.

“We know it’s going to take some time but I think just starting some of these youth programs now is very needed and I’m excited about it,” Lambert said.

The first gathering happened in September with nearly three dozen residents attending. Trash, child care and public safety all came up as topics, but many agreed that their neighborhood was isolated from many helpful resources.

The various neighborhoods in the area have seen a spate of violent crime. Columbia police’s Community Outreach Unit has two dedicated officers to meet with people in the area to reduce it- a unit ABC 17 News has highlighted before.

The second gathering happened in January, with nearly 40 people in attendance. Lack of youth activities, crime, community resources, resources for younger parents and transportation were all concerns that residents in North Columbia talked about at the second meeting.

The meeting was part of the 2016-2019 city’s strategic plan.

Leaders and residents will meet again Feb. 21 to discuss ways to raise money for the recreation center.