NeighborScapes NFP is the manager (the âManagerâ or âSponsorâ) of a newly formed company, South Side Shares, LLC (the âCompanyâ), which is seeking to raise $100,000 through this offering. NeighborScapes is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to neighborhood transformation primarily through its principal program, Innovation Houses, which combines housing revitalization with the growth of community service and civic engagement.
NeighborScapes presently operates two Innovation Houses, housing a total of 11 Community Building Fellows, and a third house is in the process of being renovated. With the $100,000 raised through this offering, the Company will purchase, renovate and operate four more houses. Target houses are two- or three-unit properties with eight to nine bedrooms each. NeighborScapes recruits Community Building Fellows from broad social networks and advertises with a preference for residents from the community or surrounding neighborhoods.
Innovation Houses are the centerpiece of the Transform Neighborhoods campaign, which focuses on catalyzing dramatic change in racially concentrated areas of poverty. The Innovation House program places fellows in the Greater Englewood neighborhood, an historically segregated and underrepresented area on Chicago's south side. Fellows pay affordable rent in exchange for their commitment to civic service in the neighborhood, thus directly helping to reduce blight and at the same time strengthen community engagement. The fellows also assist Greater Englewood neighborhood organizations in realizing community-defined goals at little to no cost. Community Building Fellowships attract local mission-minded civic actors who develop leadership skills, independent living skills, and a sense of civic responsibility. Strengthening collective efficacy through community building can inspire and empower a generation to fight for people who have been neglected.
Source
