By Katherine Van Meyl
Lowertown, Our Home was first established in 2007 as the Lowertown East Security Committee. It was formed to collectively address security concerns and to improve safety in the neighbourhood.
Our mission is to engage community members in identifying common concerns, community solutions and preventative measures to increase safety and build healthier communities.
We started back in 2007 with six partners. Now there are fourteen partners and many more we partner with for special projects. Our official partners include the Lowertown East Residents Committee (LERC), Lowertown Community Resource Centre, Ottawa Community Housing, Patro d’Ottawa, Action Housing, Options Bytown, Lowertown Good Neighbours House, Centre de Services Guigues, Ottawa Police Service, Shepherds of Good Hope, Mathieu Fleury, John Howard Society of Ottawa, Crime Prevention Ottawa, and United Way.
At the center of the Lowertown, Our Home project are the residents of Lowertown East. We support the Lowertown East Residents Committee, which spearheads most initiatives of the project. Some of these initiatives are Winterfest, Movies in the Park, the Lowertown Café and Walkabouts.
Lowertown, Our Home partners are grateful to United Way for giving me the opportunity to work four days per week on this inspiring initiative. I’ve been the coordinator for five months, and it is an enriching experience to work collaboratively with partners and residents to find solutions to issues related to safety.
If you’re interested in participating in the Lowertown, Our Home project, I would encourage you to attend the Lowertown East Residents Committee meetings. They meet on the first Thursday of the month from 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. The location varies, so please contact me at kvanmeyl@crcbv.ca or at 613-789-3930 ext 324 to learn more.
See you next month!