OneHolyoke hosts event to focus on innovations in public safety

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll highlights the important work her office and community partners are doing during the Building and Sustaining Livable Communities event.
Reminder Publishing photo by Tyler Garnet

HOLYOKE — Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, Mayor Joshua Garcia, First Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Fitzgerald, and Ed Caisse were a few of the many who joined the community for OneHolyoke CDC’s second annual “Building & Sustaining Livable Communities” event on June 29.

The newly-established event centered around Innovations in Public Safety, bringing together community leaders, public safety officials, and community members to explore collaborative approaches to safer, stronger neighborhoods.

Founded in 1971, OneHolyoke CDC has created over 160 new homes in the Flats, Churchill and South Holyoke neighborhoods, rehabilitated hundreds of apartments, and provided thousands of home improvement grants to homeowners through the Neighborhood Improvement Program.

OneHolyoke CDC Executive Director Michael Moriarty, who moderated the event, said that improving communities requires collaboration.

“We want to be the organization in Holyoke that thinks deeper about the issues and can change this community for the better,” Moriarty said.

Moriarty also announced he will reduce his role with the organization and that Chief Operating Officer Nayroby Rosa will become OneHolyoke CDC’s next executive director. Driscoll presented Moriarty with a Governor’s Citation recognizing his leadership and service.

Garcia said creating a livable community requires partnerships among city government, community organizations, law enforcement, neighborhood leaders, state officials and residents.

“If we’re going to stay true to the mission that is in the heart of who we are as a city, building and sustaining livable communities, I’m going to need each and every one of you,” Garcia stated. “Sustainability and safety, they’re not singular efforts; they are collective, ongoing commitments.”

Garcia said that although public safety is about policing, it is also about public health services, building safety and inspectional services, code enforcement, transportation and traffic safety, public work-related services, housing stability and homelessness response, and environmental and climate resilience work.

Besides investing in innovative approaches to policing prevention, targeted enforcement, and community partnerships, Garcia said Holyoke is also addressing the root causes that have a direct effect on health outcomes, such as housing conditions, stability, neighborhood environment, access to healthcare, food access, educational opportunity gaps, economic instability, and governance and policy decisions.

Driscoll praised organizations like OneHolyoke CDC and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation for their role in strengthening neighborhoods.

“It is everybody’s job to make sure our communities and our neighborhoods are safe,” Driscoll stated. “There’s an art and a science to having really safe neighborhoods and to ensure that people feel engaged and heard. The foundation of a community is being able to live in a place that you feel safe, and supported and loved.”

On top of showcasing the importance of community partners, Driscoll said that she and Gov. Maura Healey’s government experiences have allowed them to create opportunities to uplift and empower what’s happening locally.

Fitzgerald highlighted the Hampden County district attorney’s Emerging Adult Court of Hope program, a specialized, collaborative program launched in partnership with Roca Inc. and designed to give young adults ages 18-24 facing serious criminal charges a second chance through intensive support and judicial oversight.

The event also recognized Caisse and his impact through the Holyoke Safe Neighborhood Initiative. Caisse retired earlier this year after more than three decades with the Hampden County Sheriff’s Department.

Matt Perkins and James Stark from LISC explained the organization’s three-pronged approach to improving neighborhoods and creating a safer place. The organization focuses on the physical places by uplifting the people involved and reshaping systems.

LISC’s mission focuses on building on a foundation of affordable housing to fuel healthy families and businesses, as well as growing local economies through comprehensive, data-driven community efforts.

Perkins said LISC will partner with MassDevelopment, the Transformative Development Initiative and OneHolyoke CDC to bring their strategies to Holyoke.

Moriarity said that OneHolyoke, in collaboration with LISC, will look to develop a plan to make the Churchill neighborhood a “safe, attractive neighborhood for the long haul.”

To learn more about OneHolyoke CDC’s ongoing work, readers can visit oneholyoke.org.