and have lived here all their adult lives. “It’s a very important area, because out of Gowdy came most of our black leaders in this city,” Mack says. “Look at the makeup of the Legislature and elected officials in the city and county. People like (Sen.) Alice Harden and (Hinds County Circuit Judge) Tomie Green were all reared here.” Troy Stovall, Jackson State’s senior vice president for finance and operations, is overseeing the redevelopment plans for the area just south of the campus that includes Washington Addition. He says university officials are taking great care to be respectful of existing neighborhoods. “Our overall goal is to reconnect to downtown and to turn those underutilized areas into a vibrant community,” Stovall says. “But we do have an onus to do no harm to those folks already living there. That’s kind of our working mantra.” Stovall says one of the most important elements of the initial phase is to reach out to established community groups, such as churches, neighborhood associations and businesses, to seek their input into the planning process.
“Our overall goal is to reconnect to downtown and to turn those underutilized areas into a vibrant community. but we do have an onus to do no harm to those folks already living there. that’s kind of our working mantra.”
“We’re working with the folks who are already there,” he says. “There are lots of vacant and abandoned property, and we’re planning on leveraging and turning that into more traditional neighborhoods.” Stovall says most of the work in the area bordered by Morehouse Avenue, U.S. 80, Valley Street and Terry Road is still in the planning stage. The university’s goals include tackling one block at a time, he says. “Over time, we want to create a new entrance to the community near Lincoln Street near the John A. Peoples Jr. Building. And one of the things we’re going to change, quite frankly, is the fence surrounding the campus in that area,” Stovall says. “As opposed to a perimeter fence, we want to put up something more inviting and engaging for the community. We want to be seen as part of the community.” To ensure the project’s success by having adequate resources, Stovall says the university is working closely with both state and city officials as well as the West Jackson Community Development Corporation.
troy stovall, Jackson state university’s senior vice president for finance and operations
The task is daunting, he says, because the university is facing about 30 years of disinvestment – including poor lighting, streets and drainage – in the area. “We’re hoping by this summer to start digging some dirt,” Stovall says. (Jackson State) will only go as far as the community around us can go. We can build $20 million
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Focuses on southwest end of Jackson State Will offer mixed-income affordable housing options initially for university employees, city workers and state workers Focuses on one of the oldest African-American communities in Jackson Would create a new entrance to Jackson State near Lincoln Street University’s initial phase of the project is slated to begin in summer 2007 on Barrett Avenue Sources: Urban Design Research Center Development Plan, Harvey Johnson Jr. and Troy Stovall
Troy Stovall, Jackson State University’s senior vice president for finance and operations, reviews redevelopment plans in his office.