In 2013, Prosperity Indiana began a multi-year partnership with the Legacy Foundation of Lake County to design a program that uses a neighborhood-based collective impact approach to strengthen communities from within -- through organizing, planning and decision-making and action. 

Recently, the Legacy Foundation announced support from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation to launch a new community development corporation (CDC) for Lake County, Indiana. The Legacy Foundation is seeking an Acting Director [job description] who will start up and manage a newly-formed Community Development Corporation (CDC). 

This CDC will take a creative neighborhood based approach to community engagement, planning, and place-making projects. This Community Development Corporation will be managed by and located within the Legacy Foundation during an initial incubation period until it can become an independent organization. At that point, pending on the job success, the Acting Director will transition to becoming Executive Director of an independent 501c3 CDC.

“We appreciate the support from JPMorgan Chase for Legacy Foundation to develop and launch the Lake County CDC. We see this as an opportunity to provide much-needed community development support to area neighborhoods,” said Legacy Foundation President Carolyn Saxton.

Through Neighborhood Spotlight and a Choice Neighborhood program, community groups were trained to engage residents and leaders, develop a community plan, and implement projects. FAITH Farms, a project of Gary, Indiana’s Emerson neighborhood, for example, turned a vacant lot into an urban garden with greenhouses and a steady group of volunteers who grow fresh vegetables, fruits and herbs. Gary’s Miller neighborhood leveraged the Spotlight program to secure funding for a bike-sharing program.

After working with five northwest Indiana neighborhoods – the Emerson, Miller, and University Park East communities of Gary, Griffith, and northwest Hobart – Legacy and partners determined that a county-wide community development corporation could help deepen resident engagement and move to greater implementation in existing neighborhoods.