Macon-Bibb County has been selected to participate in the inaugural Community Connectors Cohort and will be using the technical assistance and funding provided to help bring Historic Pleasant Hill closer together. The Community Connectors program is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and is led by Smart Growth America in partnership with Equitable Cities, the New Urban Mobility Alliance, and America Walks.

Along with 14 other communities, Macon-Bibb County will participate in conferences and trainings, as well as be eligible for grants, to co-design its project to repair damage from divisive infrastructure and better connect local communities. The Community Connectors program will take place the next two years and features a learning exchange this November in Atlanta, GA and links local leaders to experts and other cities attempting to accomplish similar objectives. 

"This is a big opportunity for us to continue the important work of neighborhood sustainability in our beloved Pleasant Hill,” says Tonja Khabir, Community Facilitator. “Its rich history and culture deserve preservation and protection. This program will provide us the necessary capacity to implement this equitable development in our community."

“We are excited to welcome Macon-Bibb to participate in the Community Connectors program alongside a cohort of 14 other projects from communities across the country,” said Beth Osborne, Vice President of Transportation and Thriving Communities at Smart Growth America. “There is strong momentum to repair the inequities caused by divisive infrastructure, and we’re pleased to support the efforts to create a more equitable transportation and bring communities closer together.”

The goal of the project in Macon-Bibb County is to develop a framework for the commercial and job creation strategy for Walnut Street, including engagement of residents and property owners to define anti-displacement strategies, further define housing strategies, and more. According to Khabir, this work will help supplement other projects in Pleasant Hill, including the improvement of Linear Park, connecting the neighborhood to the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail, and more.

“Over the last four years, our work in Pleasant Hill has been an intential effort to change its trajectory through housing stability, enhanced resource availability, and community empowerment through inclusion…all while maintaining its amazingly unique history and culture,” says Tedra Huston, Executive Director of the Macon-Bibb Community Enhancement Authority. “Being a part of this cohort will help us continue that effort, all while enhancing and propelling the work to the next level.”

Removing divisive infrastructure is largely uncharted territory in the United States, but the need to fix the damage it has caused is imperative. Transportation infrastructure like dividing highways and dangerous arterial roads often separates and harms the communities living around them. This is particularly true for communities that have been historically marginalized, who are more likely to live near large roads and face the environmental, economic, and social harms they cause.

For more information about the Community Connectors program and this project, visit https://smartgrowthamerica.org/community-connectors.