Community Engagement Event Reflection

Prior to the Mid City Studio Community Engagement Event I was not sure how well the event would go over. The feedback we got from putting the boards up the week prior to the event was not exactly what we had been hoping for. This led me to question how seriously the community took our project and how many people would actually be in attendance at the event.  

                The actual event however surprised me because we really had a very good turnout and received some valuable feedback pertaining to our project. I am very pleased with the Community Engagement Event and the reaction we received from the community.  I think the fact that I was not expecting such a pleasant community reaction was part of the reason I am even more now excited for the project because I now more than ever understand the needs of the community.

 If I were doing this event, I would have brought different food. I understand that we were on a budget but a big portion of this project is food based and a lot of the feedback we got back pertained to the things these people ate. If we had brought food more attuned to the diet of the community we could have gotten an even bigger turnout and they would probably be more thankful and willing to be more open about their thoughts on the project.

I learned that the neighborhood can be dangerous, but is also a strong community of people who are aware of each other and the concerns and hardships in their life. I heard about the community’s need for such a project and how it could better the area. The grocery store is a great addition to the community based on the feedback I received; also the sort of things the grocery store sells is important to keeping the grocery store prosperous.  People also really seemed to have a need for a program such as our workforce development initiative.