Land & Neighborhood Stewardship
Within the Grant Street Community
Durham is home to several historically Black neighborhoods that carry deep cultural, spiritual, and communal significance—including Hayti (where Grant Street resides), Crest Street, Southside, West End (Lyon Park), Walltown, Merrick-Moore, Bragtown, and Old East Durham. These neighborhoods have long been places of resilience, creativity, and care, shaped by generations of Black families who built lives, institutions, and community in the face of systemic challenges.
As development pressures continue to rise, we are in ongoing conversation with leaders across several of these neighborhoods to explore how land, homes, and stories can be cared for and sustained for generations to come.
From time to time, we gather with neighborhood leaders and trusted partners to share learning, build relationships, and discern what long-term neighborhood stability could look like within each unique context. These conversations remain open and evolving—recognizing that each neighborhood will move according to its own history, needs, and leadership.
At the neighborhood level, we are taking practical steps to better understand property ownership, identify opportunities for preservation, and explore pathways that support long-term community benefit. This includes learning from existing models, connecting with aligned partners, and creating space for future collaboration where there is shared interest.
A key part of this work is our aspiration to acquire and steward properties within our own neighborhood—holding them in ways that prioritize community use, long-term stability, and neighborhood benefit. Rather than properties being lost to outside speculation, we envision spaces that can be used by neighbors—for housing, gathering, creative expression, and local economic activity—rooted in the life of the community itself.
Our hope is to support efforts that allow neighborhoods to retain greater influence over what happens to their land—ensuring that future generations can remain rooted in the places they call home.
Goal: $2.5M
