I own an apartment in a new area of Melbourne known as "Docklands". It
is reclaimed ship docking area as the name suggests that has been left
to dillapidate for near a hundred years. Its redeeming feature is that
it is right next to city of 3.75 million and on the waters edge.  It
is undergoing massive development and improvemnet which is primarily
based on a line of tall skyscraper apartment towers and a line of
upmarket retaurants and bars; so far proving extremely successful. 
For those in USA there is apparently something  very similar on the
west coast( I think) which was similary transformed from coastal
wasteland to apartments and restauarants/ bars etc.  The question I am
pondering as a new member of the newly formed residents association is
" how do we ensure that before masses of people move in and the place
becomes   similar to some other  cheap tourist meccas with no sense of
belonging for residents , can we establsih and build a real sense of
community in this new suburb. We want to avoid at all costs what
happened to our tropical playground, The Goldcoast" where all sorts of
fly-by-nighters  and various other short stay  business people came in
so that today there is almost no sense of community there at all!! 
People there are isolated in their dwellings and reportedly very
little comunity activities, get-togethers etc are in place there.
Again how can we, the  brand new residents of Docklands avoid this and
get something going, whether it be activities, newsletters, formal
meetings, competitions etc.

Hello johnfrommelbourne-ga:

Your situation sounds promising, but frustratingly isolated at the
moment, all right. But you're correct: there are things a small group
of volunteers can do to build a sense of community and neighborhood.

A good place to start is the "Making Sense of Place" page, at:
http://www.makingsenseofplace.org/resources/community.asp

which will link you to a number of organizations. One of the best
links
there is Empowerment Institute/Global Action Plan:
http://www.globalactionplan.org/

which emphasizes human interaction in creating a sense of neighborhood
& belonging. That main page will link you to the "Living Neighborhood
Program," which delineates how to build a community that is:

"Safer
Healthier
Quieter
Prettier
Friendlier
More entertaining
More economical
Better places to raise kids
Kinder to the environment . . ." 
Posterity (livable neighborhoods pass on priceless gifts) "

You can even purchase a community building workbook from the site
at:
http://www.globalactionplan.org/Files/EI_Frameset3.htm

The workbook instructs community activists on creating such programs
as: team welcome wagon/ team housewarming; dispute resolution;
planning a block
party; planting community (flower and vegetable) gardens; forming food
cooperatives; making your neighborhood greener and cleaner, and
providing cooperative baby-sitting/ daycare. (In order to pull off
these great ideas, you'll need a few other people to join you in
forming a community enhancement planning team for Docklands.)

This academic research paper, "Building Community Initiatives in
Rural, Coastal Communities,"
http://www.aae.wisc.edu/www/cced/952.pdf

explores how residents of a small Green Bay town named Oconto decided
to rehabilitate their old waterfront. You'll have to wade through some
academia-ese until you hit plain English, around Page 8.

A good general interest site is the U.S. Government's NOAA (National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)'s Web page, "Living On The
Coast':
http://www.csc.noaa.gov/smartgrowth/

which contains tips for" balancing coastal communities' needs for
economic growth, environmental protection, and social health and
well-being."

While I was searching for coastal communities, I stumbled upon this
article on one "community school": "A Steadiness from Within: Building
a Sense of Community at The Community School," which happens to be in
the beautiful coastal town of Camden, Maine. (The films PEYTON PLACE
and IT HAPPENED TO JANE, were filmed there, btw.)
        
For general background on community schools, see
http://www.communityschools.org/

You might also want to consider such things as group "bluffs trails
hikes" -- I'm thinking you might have bluffs in Docklands? Group hikes
can be fun and are a good way for residents to nurture budding
friendships.

If you'd like to learn about getting help to create trails, or if you
don't have any flora and fauna nearby and you want establish a
committee to develop community parks, look for possible help for
funding at
"Grant Programs: Funding and Support for Heritage Conservation": 
http://www.nre.vic.gov.au/4A25676D002853CA/BCView/4EAA7D9B39DF91E8CA256CE0000FF286?OpenDocument

Another good idea is to form a historical society to preserve the
area's heritage. If funding for such a program is problematic, a local
school might want to start a "history club" (there's one at my local
school) and let the kids gather, organize, and catalog historical
photos and other memorabilia.The local library may be able to house
and display such items until a formal historical society can be
established. Learning local history also makes kids more appreciative
of, and in involved in, their community, too.
 
You may also want to startup a community newsletter or news and
information Web site. See the UK "Grass Routes" site:
http://www.quest-net.org/grass.asp?mode=newsletters

for some ideas. You may be able to get grant money, or local
businesses may be willing to pay for ads that will sustain a free
monthly newsletter or a community Web site.

Once you begin meeting your neighbors at those community block parties
and yard (jumble) sales you're going to be enjoying soon, you may meet
some retired reporters (or semi-retired, now stay-at-home, moms who
used to be writers or reporters), willing to volunteer time and effort
to a newsletter.

Btw, There are several "planned communities" in coastal Florida that
I've heard of, but I couldn't find quite what you were referring to
re: coastal U.S. city. You may be thinking of Baltimore, which did a
wonderful job of rehabilitating its old docks district back in the
1980s.

There's a lot you can do, and cheers to you for caring enough to try
and make Docklands into a real neighborhood!

Search Strings:
"building sense community"
"funding parks development Australia"
"coastal communities 'community planners'"
"coastal community renewal"

Regards,
nancylynn-ga

---

Clarification of Answer by nancylynn-ga on 21 Apr 2003 10:18 PDT

Terribly sorry: I neglected to give you the link for the article about
the Camden, ME, community school.

The article, "A Steadiness From Within: Building a Sense of Community
at the Community School," can be read at:
http://www.spinninglobe.net/asteadiness.htm

This article is reprinted from COMMUNITIES MAGAZINE, which focuses on
"intentional communities," a.k.a., cooperative communities. Their
homepage is:
http://fic.ic.org/cmag/

You may find some good ideas there, too.

Regards,
nancylynn-ga

---

Clarification of Answer by nancylynn-ga on 25 Apr 2003 13:26 PDT

Hello John:

Per your request, here are some links that focus on the Baltimore
waterfront renewal project.(The bulk of the Baltimore project was
completed in the '70s and early '80s):

http://www.mitchellmoss.com/articles/urbanwaterfront.html

http://www.tbrpc.org/waterfront/baltimore.htm

http://www.fineliving.com/fine/adventure_essentials/article/0,1663,FINE_1421
_1543757,00.html

http://search.baltimore.org/pages/press_inner.htm

http://www.baltimoredevelopment.com/initiatives_east.shtml

Here's an interesting '96 article about how to overhaul NYC's
waterfront,
which notes Baltimore's and Boston's renewal projects:
http://www.city-journal.org/html/6_2_the_wasted.html

Also, these close-up sites of Baltimore attractions:  

http://www.harborplace.com/

http://www.thewatertaxi.com/

This article details efforts to beautify and renew the waterfront in
the
much-maligned cities of Trenton and Camden, NJ.
http://www.princetoninfo.com/199807/80708p01.html

The very charming, but now economically depressed city of Hartford,
CT, is
attempting a major waterfront renewal. Hartford isn't on the ocean,
but is
on the banks of the Connecticut River -- a major river which runs
through
much of the New England region. You may find this site, about
Hartford's
grass roots group, Riverfront Recapture, of interest:
http://www.trincoll.edu/orgs/scialnce/ISP/Sample%20Project/Adrians%20Landing_files/frame.htm

I left a suggestion for you in "Comment" about how you might be able
to go about assembling a group of community volunteers. Besides
Docklands' town council, you can also approach the local Chamber of
Commerce, if you have one.

Regards,
nancylynn-ga

Yes thanks Nancy, that was really excellent. I can see you put a
decent chunk of time in researching question to come up with quality
info and links, only some of which I have gone into already. I only
placed a small fee initially but thought I would get something back a
little more upmarket if I added just a cupla dollars more, which is
exactly what you provided.  You are right and me wrong, the sister
waterfront community similarly established on old docks wasteland was
the Baltimore development. You have provided enough general info
already but if you know of some relavant sites do you think you could
add
any that actually refer to the experience with the Baltimore docklands
reclamation/urbanisation project?? Dont worry too much if you cant and
once again thanks very much for your research

Thank you so much for the kind rating and the tip. I will be glad to
search for some sites related to Baltimore's reclamation and post them
here as an "Answer Clarification." I hope to get back to you on that
within a few days.

Btw, a good place for you to start the ball rolling would be to
approach the town council. They might even be willing to foot the bill
for any research, such as buying copies of the workbook I listed for
you. They might even be willing to setup a committee for you and
others who want to find ways to improve community interaction. Council
members are likely to know others who share your concerns and who
would like to join such a project.

I'll get back to you soon,
nancylynn-ga

Nance,  I got the extra parts on Baltimore and had a very short look
so many thanks for the extra work there also, much appreciated. Some
of what I have seen is very interesting from this last installment. I
now have a lot of stuff to go through overall which can only broaden
my outlook on what options lie ahead for our new community.

 John From Melbourne

Some thots:  People bond not only through shared interests and
activities, but through the stress of dealing with difficult and truly
challenging situations . . . I should say . . . dealing with these
situations in skillful and creative ways.  Social programs often fall
short, or people have a sense of meaninglessness if these qualities
are not developed in individuals who can share them.  Best of all is
bonding that happens for no rational 'reason' . . . somehow just the
simple acknowledgement of each person's human-ness and presence. 
Cultivate social venues that revolve around simple things. Here's an
idea from my very small island community:  Tidy Tuesday.  Several (why
is it always?) women get together each Tuesday and, en masse, do a big
housecleaning project for someone. One that would be overwhelming for
just one person to tackle.  Each week it moves to someone else's
house.  It's fun, it's productive, it's very personal.  Just an idea.

Yes thanks for that ...and why always women indeed,but that is how it
always seems to be. Idea did intrigue me however as it does sound like
it has merit and could work.

  Thanks again,

 John From Melebourne