Local governments asked to donate to initiative

Charleston's latest effort to break the cycle of poverty and improve education may come to fruition, regardless of whether the community wins a federal grant to develop the project.

Officials have been meeting for months to develop a comprehensive set of programs modeled on the Harlem Children's Zone, a 97-block area in Central Harlem in New York City that offers a continuous pipeline of educational, social, health and recreational services for children.

President Barack Obama has committed to creating Promise Neighborhoods based on the same concept, and $500,000, one-year planning grants will be available for 20 communities that want to develop these programs.

Local leaders have been positioning the community to win that money, and they still would like to have it. But securing the grant may no longer be a prerequisite for making the idea a reality.

"If we think it's really that good, then we shouldn't be depending on getting the $500,000 federal grant," said Bill Hewitt, a local businessman and civic leader who's considering chairing the Charleston Promise Neighborhood board. "That kind of grant is a drop in the bucket. If you get it, that's fine, but I don't think we should be counting on it."

Charleston Mayor Joe Riley asked Hewitt to spearhead the local effort, and Hewitt agreed on the condition that all four public agencies that are involved in the proposed zone - the school board, County Council, Charleston City Council and North Charleston City Council - agree to be a part of the project. It's essential for Charleston to meet the criteria that the Harlem project cited as keys for success, and some of those include being led by a nonprofit and local government participation, he said.

Each local board will be asked for a three-year commitment: $50,000 this year, $100,000 next year and $150,000 in 2012. The money would be used as start-up funds and go toward hiring a full-time director for the nonprofit.

Hewitt called it a wonderful opportunity for a public- private partnership for an area that's trailed the rest of the county economically, socially and academically. He hopes to have letters of agreement from the four boards soon.

"The question ultimately to government and citizens is do we think that's an important thing to do?" he said.

The proposed zone would encompass Charleston's East Side, the Neck Area and extend into North Charleston, and it would target four elementary schools: Sanders-Clyde, James Simons, Mary Ford and Chicora. The focus of the zone's programs would be the area's roughly 3,000 children, from birth to age 17, and their parents.

Riley, School Superintendent Nancy McGinley and North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey support the project, but each of their boards would have to approve the allocation. McGinley, Riley and Summey plan to present the proposal to their respective boards for approval within a month.

"We have such a generous and engaged community, and we really believe we could become a national model," Riley said.

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County Administrator Allen O'Neal plans to recommend that County Council not approve the money because council decided a few years ago that it wouldn't contribute to outside agencies and because it's facing budget constraints. The issue will go to the council's committee Feb. 25.

Hewitt understood that it's somewhat of a leap of faith for governments to give money to a nonprofit, but each public body would have a seat on the nonprofit's governing board. And for every $6 of taxpayers' money, Hewitt said the goal would be to raise at least $4 privately.

Dozens of nonprofits and thousands of dollars already are at work in the proposed Charleston Promise Neighborhood, and the real issue is whether those programs are coordinated and are the most cost-effective, Hewitt said. The long-term goal would be to make that area indistinguishable from the rest of the county.

"I believe it's worth doing and I believe it can succeed," Hewitt said.

Reach Diette Courrégé at dcourrege@postandcourier.com or 937-5546.