Located east of the City’s historic core, the McCarty Burlington Neighborhood is a densely populated residential neighborhood that is almost two-thirds Hispanic.  The neighborhood is characterized by diverse elements such as multiple parks, schools, churches, local businesses, historic architecture, and convenient access to Downtown and the Aurora Transportation Center.  However, just like any neighborhood with aging infrastructure and an evolving residential base, the Aurora Neighborhood Planning Initiative (ANPI) was utilized as an engaging community planning tool to help resolve the neighborhood’s key issues.

Teska played an integral role in leading the planning process in conjunction with City staff, volunteer members of a neighborhood Leadership Team, and a small group of Spanish interpreters.  Through a series of public meetings, residents and other community stakeholders were provided with opportunities to identify neighborhood issues, brainstorm methods to resolve the key issues, and vote on priority action steps for neighborhood improvement.  Implementation of these action steps hinges upon an organizational framework built around a collaborative partnership between the City and neighborhood, particularly active community volunteers and existing neighborhood groups.

With six of the City’s 20+ neighborhoods completed, Teska continues to work with the City of Aurora to evaluate and improve the planning process to ensure future neighborhoods can participate in a streamlined and effective ANPI process.