Officially, it’s been an organization — actually an advisory committee — since 2016, and it has already been embroidered into the fabric of the community. The organization is mentioned ― call it practically, seemingly or virtually ― in every event or meeting.
During most meetings of Hamilton City Council, one of the three council members who serve on the 17Strong board — if not two or all three — mentions the organization. The rainbow of t-shirt colors depicting their We>Me logo can be seen at almost every city event. And if they’re not sponsoring an event, one of their board members or volunteers is likely part of the organizers.
This past year has been one of the best years for 17Strong, an organization that was birthed by the Sense of Place Committee in 2014. The citizen-led effort is the lead champion of Hamilton’s 17 neighborhoods, and in 2023 these volunteers were busy.
“Our 17Strong movement of a more connected Hamilton is as strong as it’s ever been,” said Brandon Saurber, Hamilton’s director of Neighborhoods Department. And while 2023′s efforts are something to celebrate, there’s more work to do.
As Saurber said, “there isn’t a goal line for this work. There are too many unoccupied seats at the table for anyone to do a victory lap.”
The work includes building on and promoting the Coffee with Council series of discussions that six of the 17 Hamilton neighborhoods had. Conversations included traffic, emergency preparedness, active transportation plan, parks and the history of Juneteenth. And then there was the second annual “Spring Clean the 17,″ a series of cleanups in each neighborhood for 17 straight days, and the annual distribution of grants and nanogrants designed to better the city one area or event at a time.
This past fall, 17Strong also hosted a community-wide conversation on short-term rentals, such as AirBnBs, which helped the Hamilton Planning Department in revisiting and refining the city’s future approach of short-term rentals.
“This conversation, while very passionate, was respectful and heard different perspectives from their own,” Saurber said. “The Planning Department played a key facilitation role in the discussion and is working to revisit and refine how we approach short-term rentals going forward.”
Then there was the fun stuff, from Movies in the Park series to a half-dozen trunk-or-treats, to social mixers at the Hamilton Joes game, Municipal Brew Works, Marcum Park, the Hamilton Urban Backyard, and Basil 1791.
Light Up the Loop and Walking Wednesdays. Cookouts, block parties and parades. A couple of Community Field Days in parks across the city.
17Strong plans to build on 2023′s successes with its biggest annual events: Celebration Breakfast and the Hamilton Neighborhoods Summit.
The Celebration Breakfast, which is on Feb. 24 at Miami University Regionals Hamilton campus, will celebrate the microgrant projects from 2023 and kick off for the 2024 grant program year. The organization will present the Kathleen Klink Award for Neighborhood Leadership.
This summer, the second annual Hamilton Neighborhoods Summit will be on June 22 at Hamilton High School with the theme of “How Do You Do.” It is not just a greeting, but a way for residents to learn how they can become more actively involved where they live.
Last year’s Summit saw other communities inquire about how to form their version of 17Strong, including Middletown. Now, there’s been recent discussions about organizing a group of citizens to champion the cause of Middletown.
Whatever 17Strong is doing is working, because not only are the projects and events bettering the community, the residents are doing it with a smile. And there’s something to be said about that.
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