Project Will Match Needs To Strengths

Thu., March 6, 1997

By Jonathan Martin jonathanm@spokesman.com

The Northeast Community Center has begun a project designed to match the needs of the Nevada-Lidgerwood neighborhood with its strengths.

The idea was sired by the West Central neighborhood, which recently “mapped” the assets of its individual residents and compiled the information in a database.

But the Nevada-Lidgerwood project, run by a pair of community center Vista workers, focuses on the resources of the neighborhood’s groups and organizations.

The workers will interview more than 200 neighborhood organizations, from churches to garden clubs to Block Watch groups, to find specialities and resources, said Connie Nelson, the Vista volunteer coordinating the project.

The results will also become part of a public database. Nelson hopes to use the database to match needy individuals or groups with money, materials, labor or expertise.

“It’s an excellent idea,” said Nelson. “To make it as powerful as possible, we really need to map the assets available.”

Nelson thinks targeting organizations will produce better results than surveying individuals. The West Central neighborhood received a disappointingly small number of responses in a door-to-door survey last summer.

“Taking the associational approach we figure will be a lot stronger,” said Nelson. “They often have connections with other organizations.”

It’s unclear how the database will be accessible. Nelson said a computer terminal may be available in the Nevada-Lidgerwood COPS shop, to be opened soon at the corner of Addison and Wellseley.

West Central posted its database on TINCAN, a regional computer web available to anyone with a computer and modem.

Nelson envisions expanding the mapping to Hillyard, Logan and Chief Garry Park, the other three neighborhoods serviced by the Northeast Community Center.

, DataTimes

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.