WEST SIDE CITIZENS ORGANIZATION

PROGRAM - WEST SIDE VITALITYOUR LONG-TERM VISION IS A CULTURALLY & ECONOMICALLY VIBRANT WEST SIDE WHERE RESIDENTS HAVE PATHWAYS FOR DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION & TOOLS FOR SELF-DETERMINATION. WE ENVISION A NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE RESIDENTS CAN AFFORD TO LIVE, EARN FAMILY-SUSTAINING WAGES, AND EXPERIENCE AMENITIES THAT REFLECT AND CELEBRATE THEIR CULTURAL ASSETS.UNDER THIS UMBRELLA OF WEST SIDE VITALITY IN 2025; WSCO HOSTED WEST SIDE VOICES FORUMS WHERE COMMUNITY CAME TOGETHER TO BREAK BREAD, AND SHARE INSIGHTS, BUILD RELATIONSHIPS AND PARTICIPATE IN OUR HYPER LOCAL DEMOCRATIC PROCESS OF ORGANIZING ON QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUES ON THE WEST SIDE. IN 2025 THE VOICES FORUMS WERE HELD IN STRATEGIC POCKETS OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD WITH 40+ PARTICIPANTS AT EACH FORUM.PROGRAM - ROBERT STREET ACCOUNTABILITY TASKFORCEIN 2025 WSCO ESTABLISHED A CROSS-SECTOR TASK FORCE TO ENSURE COMMUNITY ACCOUNTABILITY, MITIGATE HARM, AND PREVENT DISPLACEMENT BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER THE RECONSTRUCTION OF ROBERT STREET. THIS MODEL CENTERS RESIDENTS AND LOCALLY OWNED BUSINESSES IN REAL-TIME PROBLEM-SOLVING AND SHARED DECISION-MAKING TIED TO PUBLIC INVESTMENT. THROUGH ORGANIZING AND PUBLIC TESTIMONY, THE TASK FORCE WAS EMBEDDED IN THE CITY'S MUNICIPAL CONSENT RESOLUTION AND FORMALIZED THROUGH AN MOU WITH MNDOT, MAKING COMMUNITY ACCOUNTABILITY A REQUIREMENT AND ELEVATING SMALL BUSINESS MITIGATION FUNDS AS A CITY LEGISLATIVE PRIORITY. THE TASK FORCE GROUP MEETS TWICE A MONTH, AND CONSISTS OF RESIDENTS, BUSINESS OWNERS, STATE AND CITY LEADERS, MN DOT, AND OTHER MUNICIPALITIES. PROGRAM - SOUTHPORT ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVESOUTHPORT ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVE IS JUSTICE FOCUSED ON AN INDUSTRIAL ZONE ON THE FLATS WITH SOME OF THE HIGHEST AIR TOXICITY LEVELS IN THE STATE OF MN. RESIDENT LEADERS ARE ADVANCING ACTIONABLE DEMANDS WITH THE CITY, PORT AUTHORITY & PRIVATE CORPORATIONS. INCLUDING THE DESIGN OF AN EGRESS ROUTE, AND A EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE SOUTHPORT NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE WEST SIDE. RESIDENT LEADERS MEET WEEKLY, WITH A STEADY GROWING NUMBER OF DIRECTLY IMPACTED RESIDENT HOUSEHOLDS PARTICIPATING. IN DECEMBER OF 2025, WSCO WAS ABLE TO PROVIDE EACH HOUSEHOLD WITH HIGH QUALITY HOME AIR PURIFIERS, AND EMERGENCY SHELTER IN PLACE KITS DUE TO THE PROXIMITY OF THE HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIAL PARK. PROGRAM - WEST SIDE FLATS TO THE FUTUREIN 2025, WSCO CELEBRATED WITH THE FIRST FAMILIES TO RECEIVE THE INHERITANCE FUND A FORM OF REPAIR FROM THE DISPLACEMENT OF THE WS FLATS. BUILDING ON WSCO'S WORK STARTED IN 2023, WHEN WSCO COMMISSIONED RESEARCH IN ACTION TO QUANTIFY THE IMMEDIATE AND LONG-TERM IMPACTS OF THE DISPLACEMENT OF OVER 2,100 FAMILIES WERE DISPLACED OFF THE FLATS. WE GATHERED THE STORIES OF THE DESCENDANTS, PUBLISHING AN EXTENSIVE REPORT THAT, FOR THE FIRST TIME, PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED THE MAGNITUDE OF THIS LOSS. THE REPORT CONCLUDED WITH COMMUNITY-DRIVEN RECOMMENDATIONS TO CHART A COURSE FOR MEANINGFUL REPAIR AND PREVENT FURTHER ERASURE OF THE WEST SIDE'S CULTURAL ASSETS AND LEGACIES. OUR EFFORTS HERE ARE ONGOING. WSCO CONTINUES TO ORGANIZE WITH FAMILIES DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY THE DISPLACEMENT OF THE WS FLATS.PROGRAM - WEST SIDE 10 YEAR PLANIN 2025 WSCO ENGAGED RESIDENTS ON THE CREATION OF THE NEXT 10 YEAR PLAN FOR THE WEST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD. THIS INCLUDED MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDER LISTENING SESSIONS, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES, AND A RANGE OF LISTENING SESSIONS OF ELDERS, AND YOUTH. THE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS SPANNED OVER THE SUMMER OF 2025. WITH ROBUST DATA FROM RESIDENTS, LOCAL BUSINESSES, COMMUNITY LEADERS, ANCHOR INSTITUTIONS, AND FAITH COMMUNITIES WSCO IS NOW PREPARED TO MOVE INTO THE NEXT PHASE OF THE COMMUNITY PLANNING PROCESS.PROGRAM - WEST SIDE BUSINESS COALITIONIN 2025 WSCO CONTINUED TO SUPPORT THE WS SMALL BUSINESS COALITION, BY ENGAGING LOCAL BUSINESSES AND SUPPORTING LEADERSHIP, HOSTING SPACE, SECURING TRANSLATION, PRODUCING OUTREACH MATERIALS, SOCIAL MEDIA, AND ALIGNING STRATEGIC TECHNICAL SUPPORT PARTNERSHIPS.