Community Engagement
From the beginning, the NoMa BID and NPF prioritized close collaboration with residents, businesses, property owners, and other neighborhood stakeholders. The extraordinary number of people who participated and the diverse modes of engagement over the course of the 10-year project is a testament to the value placed on community collaboration.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PRINCIPLES
NPF consistently worked to ensure that in the diverse and rapidly growing NoMa neighborhood, everyone would feel invited and welcome to participate in all events through adherence to a few key principles:
- No one would ever be required to pay to participate in events.
- Free food and drink would be provided at longer events.
Residents and visitors were notified about upcoming events through digital and analog channels to be fully inclusive. The similarity in approach and priorities of the NoMa BID and NPF were mutually reinforcing and consistently conveyed the message that community concerns and input were valued. NPF also made sure that its definition of neighbors and stakeholders was not limited to just those who lived or worked within the BID boundaries.
Through professionally facilitated Community Conversations, in-person and online surveys, direct mail, and virtual meetings during the pandemic, NPF had thousands of interactions with community members. In 2016, NPF’s robust community engagement approach was recognized by the National Capital Area Chapter of the American Planning Association with its Merit Award for Distinction in Community Outreach and Engagement.
You can read more about NPF’s community engagement processes here.
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