By Julie Irwin Zimmerman, November 20, 2012

With new jobs and investment on the rise in their neighborhood, Madisonville residents were faced with a choice: let the changes happen without their input, or jump in and use this opportunity to shape the future.

Residents and leaders decided to jump in, and the result will be unveiled at a November 27 event in Madisonville, which is in the process of becoming a place matters community. The strategy for the neighborhood's future was developed over a year with the input of hundreds of stakeholders.

The effort began when LISC issued a call in the winter of 2010 for proposals to fund quality-of-life planning for communities in Greater Cincinnati. Madisonville had been targeted for economic development by the City of Cincinnati, and employers like MedPace, UC Health and The Christ Hospital were setting up shop there.

"We knew there were big changes coming to Madisonville, and we saw this as an opportunity to be prepared," says Sara Sheets, program director for the Madisonville Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation (MCURC). Sheets headed the application for the LISC planning grant.

After winning the grant, representatives from MCURC, the Madisonville Community Council and Weed and Seed Sustained, Inc. interviewed nearly 100 leaders on the neighborhood's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges. The University of Cincinnati Community Design Center helped analyze the answers.

The group then held a community-wide visioning session, at which about 200 people filled 40 pages of newsprint with their hopes and dreams for Madisonville. Follow-up committees met through the summer to develop goals and strategies in six areas: economic development, health and wellness, arts and culture, education and youth, the built environment and community engagement.

"In the past, many residents felt we were ignored by the city," says Bob Igoe, a 12-year resident of Madisonville who serves as president of the Community Council. "We took the time to explain this process, and residents liked it because they saw it was from the bottom up instead of the top down."

Join the celebration! See the unveiling of Madisonville's Quality-of-Life Plan on November 27, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., at John P. Parker School. Please RSVP to lcarson@lisc.org.