Org Community Organization: Glendale, New

Org

Community Organization: Glendale, New York

In her textbook, Cities, Change and Conflict: A Political Economy of Urban Life, Nancy Kleniewski discusses the nature of urban life and the possible conflicts that arise when people live very closely together. She approaches the subject with the notion the strategy can used to create harmony within the urban setting. This paper will examine the community of Glendale, New York, which is located within Queens, New York. This paper will look at the strengths and resources the community of Glendale, New York has to offer its inhabitants. This paper will also discuss the possible weaknesses within these public services and look at possible problems being caused by these weaknesses. This will include looking at the needs of the neighborhood and possible ways in which to improve upon services already addressing these needs. This paper will also offer a look at the demographics of the community including discussion of the size and composition of the town's population. Finally this paper will describe a community-organizing project that has been put into action as a means of creating solutions to community problems.

The Community of Glendale, New York

Vincent Seyfried writes, "Glendale is a neighborhood in west central Queens, bounded to the north by railroad tracks, to the east by Woodhaven Boulevard, to the south by a number of cemeteries, and to the west by Fresh Pond Road" (par.1). Early on, the land was sectioned off into lots measuring twenty-five by one hundred feet and mainly consisted of farmland. Later in 1893, development increased especially for Myrtle Avenue with the introduction of the trolley car powered by a steam engine. It was not until the First World War that blocks of row houses and single-family homes started to be built as family shops opened and parks were created for picnicking. The community has long been family-focused even as employment opportunities have changed. Employers before the 1980s ranged from factories producing silk ribbons, matches and airplanes to that of silent films. Glendale was largely a German population until recently when the neighborhood "attracted a number of immigrants from Romania, Yugoslavia and Poland as well as China and the Dominican Republic" (Seyfried par. 2).

Glendale, New York is a community rich in resources available for its citizens. Upon reviewing the literature available, it has become clear that community has taken action to provide programs for its people on many levels of service but also keep in mind levels of service that come expected of a town its size. These programs consist of services addressing social issues such as: housing, mental health, after-school care, employment assistance as well as general public safety services like police and emergency personnel. These are just some of the services available to Glendale's public and do not include community projects specializing in entertainment and volunteer programs. Still as positive as this may sound, it has come to one's attention that the overall population of Queens and Glendale are changing quickly both in size and diversity. As the demographic change to reflect these trends, it is important that the people within the community allow the community to reflect these changes. These would mean the present services available to the public might also need to be augmented to meet these changing needs among the town's citizens. For instance, this would mean providing services in not only English but also Spanish and Chinese.

Demographics

As eluded to above, the population of Glendale, New York has changed vastly in the last fifteen years. Whereas in 1990, ninety percent of the population was native born, it has been found that in just ten years and at the 2000 Census, that over fifty percent of the population in Glendale and Queens is foreign born (Glendale Area Population, 1 and Montefinise, 1). Whereas much of the population was white or black before are now increasingly Hispanic and Asian. Angela Montefinise writes, "Hispanics are moving into areas like Glendale, Middle Village and Jackson Heights, which used to havens for Italians, Germans, Irish and other working class immigrant populations" (3). These ethnic whites have moved eat or out of the State of New York entirely. Montefinise elaborates that more and more people from Caribbean nations and South Asia are moving into Glendale along with people from India and Pakistan (3). These are the changes seen in recent demographic studies. What is important for not only community managers (politicians and administrators) to realize is that with demographic change come new needs. It is important for the town of Glendale to study these needs and take appropriate action to implement change in programs. This may mean changing existing services but also may warrant new services to add value for these people.

Community Project