DATE: Wednesday, July 23, 1997              TAG: 9707220357

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

COLUMN: Neighborhood Exchange 

SOURCE: BY MIKE KNEPLER, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   58 lines

WORKING TOGETHER FROM THE GROUND UP

Wendy G. Hill doesn't know how far she jogs, but her running has gotten some Suffolk neighborhoods off the treadmill.

Her jogging, Hill said, gave her a closer look at blighted property in her Hall Place community and in nearby neighborhoods.

And as she moved from street to street, she began meeting more people dismayed by perpetually boarded-up houses, tall weeds, junk cars, debris that never seemed to be cleaned up, and seemingly endless continuances from the courts.

``That's what most people would talk about,'' Hill said. ``Then I started attending other community functions and neighborhood meetings. . . . I realized we have a whole lot more in common than we thought.''

So in April, Hill convened a meeting for the downtown area to discuss common frustrations. About 75 people came.

That led to the formation of Suffolk's Neighborhood Development Coalition, which includes about a dozen neighborhoods in a 3-mile radius of downtown, plus a few other groups, such as the Suffolk Property Owners and Management Association and the Nansemond-Suffolk Historical Society.

``I've only lived in Suffolk for six years. Some others have lived here all their lives and been paying taxes all their lives for services here,'' Hill said. ``They're really the key players in moving this along.''

The point of the coalition isn't to complain but to move toward solutions. They include working with City Hall to improve enforcement of anti-blight property codes, researching programs in other cities, seeking stronger laws from the General Assembly, and devising more ways for citizens to help.

This month, coalition members proposed that area cities and state legislators work regionally on this common issue.

Coalition members were encouraged to hear Suffolk's assistant city manager, Steve Herbert, pledge to work with the citizens. He also urged neighborhoods to create their own improvement plans.

Hill agreed: ``The neighborhoods need to step up to the plate and take some of the responsibility,'' Hill agreed.

She's learned that citizens sometimes can nip problems by being more neighborly instead of complaining to City Hall. ``Be nice. Don't be a jerk,'' she advised. ``You can catch more bees with honey.''

For example, she said, ``just go across the street and say, `Maybe you don't know the zoning rules against parking on your front lawn. I thought you might want to know that you can get a ticket from the city.' ''

Hill said she's also tried ideas from civic leagues in other cities, such as Norfolk's Bayview, where residents sometimes photograph blight and send the pictures to offending property owners.

She'd love to hear more ideas from neighborhoods throughout Hampton Roads. MEMO: For more information about Suffolk's Neighborhood Development

Coalition, or to share good ideas from your neighborhood, call Wendy G.

Hill, 934-1248.

Ideas for this column? Call Mike Knepler, 446-2275. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Wendy G. Hill

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