Grime: Our Alley Reclamation Project in the East-West alley between Indiana and Bales Avenues, just north of The Avenue, has produced extremely positive and ongoing results and received great feedback. This was a part of the Independence Avenue CID’s Alley Enhancement Plan, where the CID targeted known problem alleyways along the Independence Avenue corridor and took measures to create a clean, green, positively programmed space.  

Through our community partnerships, The CID installed cameras, signage, and lighting, along with the addition of native plants to beautify the area and create a positive sense of place. Local artist Brian Mapes, also known as Become More, painted murals and transformed the alley into a bustling, flourishing space using repurposed tires, mulch, and stones. He named this project “ALLEY ART”: Pulling Weeds of Despair & Planting Seeds of Hope, which is an ongoing project that he continues to work on.

Crime: Addressing crime along the Independence Avenue corridor remains one of the CID’s top priorities. Through our contracted partnership with Titan Security, the Avenue Angels remain one of the primary, proactive crime prevention measures along the Avenue corridor. 

The Titan Avenue Angels continue to provide services to CID properties, assisting with everything from removing loitering violators from a property to providing assistance with vehicle lockouts for customers at CID properties. They are a vital link in making Independence Avenue a safer place to work, shop and live. 

CID Outreach efforts also extend to those experiencing homelessness in our area. One standout example of this was when Mural Artist Kye enlisted the help of a houseless woman to paint until assistance could arrive from our office. Urban Street Ambassador (USA) supervisor Laura Cardwell, helped this individual find the support she needed. 

Chime: The Northeast Chamber of Commerce’s primary responsibility is to foster and encourage business development in the Historic Northeast community. To that end, the EGG (Economic Growth Generator) at 2659 Independence Avenue serves as a venue for a variety of small business pop-up opportunities. It also acts as a hosting venue for events hosted by the Northeast Chamber of Commerce or CID. These events include Coffee, Conversation & Culture, and Chamber after-hours networking events. 

One of the artists spotlighted by the venue was Hasna Sal. Her artwork is featured at the newly refurbished Independence Plaza Park, located at 2200 Independence Blvd. She created the permanent art installation Into The Light: A Memorial for Victims of Human Trafficking in Lykins Square Park in the Historic Northeast.  The aim is to reveal a largely unacknowledged crime in our city and to highlight the healing, hope, and redemption of the survivors. This is another way in which the NEKC Chamber of Commerce has helped to promote the artist’s work and support the community.