Quincy – Interested in the future of North Quincy and Wollaston? Join the city of Quincy, the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) for a public meeting on Tuesday, June 26, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at North Quincy High School, 316 Hancock St.
The meeting will bring together residents and business owners from North Quincy and Wollaston to discuss their vision for the future of these two neighborhoods.
| “We want to make sure all Quincy neighborhoods benefit from the investments that the city is making in planning,” said Quincy Mayor Thomas P. Koch. “We also want to make sure that the diversity of our neighborhoods is reflected in our planning processes.”
At the meeting, a panel of local leaders will discuss residents’ priorities for growth in the neighborhood. Input on these priorities was gathered through the social media planning game CommunityPlanIt, which is available at www.boston.communityplanit.org. |
The planning game, called “NoQuWo: Quincy Neighborhoods on the Move,” is an online social media game that engages the public in expressing their vision for the community’s future.
The game is being used to augment existing offline engagement efforts by bringing more people into the process – including residents under 30, who make up half the game’s users – and by providing an interactive platform for people to learn more about the issues in depth.
Game users can also deliberate about ideas in longer and more meaningful ways than attendees at a public meeting, and can develop a familiarity with each other before coming together at a public planning meeting.
The game was developed by the Engagement Game Lab at Emerson College and has been live for public viewing and playing this past month. More than 200 people have registered for the game to date, and together they’ve left upwards of 1,000 comments on topics ranging from local business development to transportation and community programs.
| “This project uses technology to supplement our grassroots efforts to pull people together,” said Janelle Chan, Executive Director of ACDC. “Game user comments show a tangible excitement about sharing the issues that matter to them with their neighbors. We’re happy to be part of facilitating this discussion.”
In conjunction with these social media efforts, residents of all ages and linguistic backgrounds were invited to participate in focus group discussions about how to strengthen the quality of life in North Quincy and Wollaston this spring. |
The feedback gathered during all phases of this project will be used for strategic planning in both neighborhoods, recognizing the high level of diversity in the population of North Quincy and Wollaston – in particular the Asian American communities.
“This is an important moment for residents to help set the agenda for neighborhood improvement,” said Robert Chen, a resident and member of the Asian American Civic Engagement Task Force convened by the Mayor. “We all have invested our hard-earned dollars and hearts in this neighborhood.”
At the meeting, data from the game play and the focus groups will be presented, and there will be activities through which attendees may add additional feedback to the information already gathered from the community. The event will close with a panel discussion from localleaders about the current state of Asian Americans in civic engagement in Quincy.
“Changing demographics and new technologies are, quite literally, ‘game changers’ when it comes to planning and civic engagement,” said Holly St. Clair, Director of Data Services at MAPC. “It is great to see neighborhood leaders, community organizations and the city of Quincy at the leading edge of new innovations.”
The meeting is free and open to the public. For more information, visit www.futureofNoQuWo.eventbrite.com or call Vivien Wu, Director of Programs at ACDC, (617) 482-2380 x206.
This project is a collaborative effort among the city of Quincy, the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), the Engagement Games Lab, Emerson College, and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), with support provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Sustainable Communities Program.