Community focused.
Community directed.
Vision, Mission, Values, and Goals
Vision
Our community, which includes and prioritizes Midtown, is a self-directed, economically strong, nurturing community that Midtown Partners supports using a model in which all funds invested are justified.
Mission
To support the social and economic revitalization of the Midtown community, making it a desirable area in which to live, work, and raise families.
About
The institution that became Midtown Partners was first incorporated in 1993 to support the social and economic revitalization of the Midtown neighborhood north of downtown Jackson, Mississippi. Since then, the organization has transitioned to providing a holistic approach to the delivery of a variety of services within the community. Midtown Partners currently focuses its programming in the areas of education, community engagement, economic development, access to healthcare, affordable housing, safety, and sustainability.
Midtown Partners has on average 80 employees, with approximately 66 of those full-time. The majority of programming that is offered by Midtown Partners is located within the Midtown neighborhood, which is bordered by West Street to the east, Mill Street to the west, Woodrow Wilson Avenue to the north, and Fortification Street to the south. The Midtown neighborhood is 215 acres with approximately 900 housing units (primarily single-family dwellings) and over 2,000 residents.
Midtown Partners has a long history of managing federal and state grants and has developed the infrastructure needed to plan, manage, and report restricted funding according to the funding source, date, expenditures, and other considerations. For fiscal year 2021-22, Midtown Partners had an operating budget of $4.5 million dollars.
Midtown Partners’ outreach efforts target very low- to moderate-income individuals who comprise the vast majority of Midtown residents. Midtown Partners’ programming is intended to reach all its residents, from the youngest to the oldest.
Impact
Affordable Housing
Implementation of the Midtown master plan for neighborhood revitalization.
Homeownership development and support.
32 housing units developed using Low Income Housing Tax Credits, a $10 million dollar investment (co-developer).
34 housing units in development using Low Income Housing Tax Credits, a $10.5 million dollar investment (co-developer).
Purchase and rehabilitation of Midtown homes to encourage homeownership.
Down payment assistance and homeowner education resources offered for first time homebuyers.
Connecting current homeowners to homeowner rehabilitation funds.
Expansion of quality rental housing for low- and middle-income households.
Economic Development
Currently partnering with Nick Wallace Culinary and Millsaps College ELSEWORKS entrepreneurship program to develop Preserve: The Midtown Culinary Center, which will both showcase Mississippi’s culture and cuisine while also providing the Midtown community with access to quality foods, culinary education, workforce training, and community engagement.
Creative economy business development incubator The Hatch offers 10,000 square feet for start-up businesses.
Supports existing and new businesses in partnership with Millsaps College Else School of Management, the Business Association of Midtown, and the Midtown Neighborhood Association.
Developed the position of creative economy coordinator to serve as a hub within Midtown to connect and coordinate programs, projects, and resources that connect Midtown residents, artists, and businesses to utilize the arts to improve the quality of life and contribute to community vibrancy.
Economic Security
Established the Early Care Workforce Cultivation network that provides participants with marketable skills that will prepare them for immediate placement into the workforce as early care educators, and provides those currently employed within childcare facilities the opportunity to advance their skills in an effort to retain those childcare works already within the childcare workforce.
Established the Prosperity Center of Greater Jackson which served as a one-stop shop facility designed around core principles and a framework with a primary focus on serving low-income families in efforts to assist them in entering/reentering the workforce.
Education
Midtown Public Charter School serves approximately 300 4th to 8th grade students.
The Midtown Family Resource Center has over 100 visitors per month.
Little Samaritan Montessori Center serves approximately 50 Jackson-area families.
Little Samaritan Montessori Center is a certified Excel By 5 site. Excel By 5 is an innovative early childhood community certification process focusing on a given community’s young children. Excel By 5 emphasizes the important roles parents and early childhood educators play in the lives of children during their most formative years.
The MAVS Connect after-school program serves the families of 75 children in 4th to 8th grade.
Early Links to Innovation serves the families of 30 children.
Health and Safety
Meals with Wheels program serves 20 home-bound and/or disabled seniors.
The Midtown Community Garden provides community access to seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Community Engagement
Support for Midtown Neighborhood Association, which has over 30 active participants.
Organizing outreach and activities for over 40 senior neighborhood residents.
Midtown Community Leadership Institute provides capacity-building for resident participants.
Support for Midtown Education Council.