Neighborhood Programs
An academy conducted in the Spring and a roundtable conducted in the Fall provided homeowner association residents and board members with educational resources to effectively lead their neighborhoods. Residents, nonprofits and community organizations used the Tool Lending Program to check out a fully stocked trailer for neighborhood cleanup events and tools for basic yard care. The City provided 47 grants totaling $53,000 to help neighborhoods conduct cleanup events, enhance landscaping, improve perimeter walls and engage residents through outreach programs.
Employees Giving Back
City employees donated $69,712 to charities during the Workplace Giving campaign and participated in the Relay for Life event to raise money for cancer research and patient care. Employees also helped raise money for residents in need, performed holiday toy drives and donated 1,385 pounds of food to the AZCEND food bank.
Community Beautification with Volunteers
Volunteers were vital to the success of community beautification projects and serving those in need. Nearly 2,400 volunteers from 60 community and school partners completed more than 200 projects during the For Our City Day, Let’s Pull Together and Pancake and Pavers events.
Nearly 500 volunteers donated more than 27,000 hours toward recreation programs and park projects. City staff also pulled together to spread more than 200 tons of rock and plant 180 plants to improve the appearance of landscaped areas around the Chandler Public Library and City buildings in the area.
Operation Back to School provided Chandler students in need with backpacks filled with school supplies, clothes, shoes and haircuts so they would be ready to learn on their first day of school.
Serving Neighbors in Need
A Community Needs Assessment identified ways to serve the human services, housing and community development needs of residents in need. The plan provides a community-informed approach to prioritize federal and local resources. In 2019, more than $2.6 million in federal and local grants were allocated to 57 programs that served Chandler families in crisis, special needs populations and youth.
Chandler was designated as a high performing Public Housing Authority for managing a combined 800 public housing, housing choice vouchers and affordable workforce housing units. 15 public housing residents successfully graduated from the Family Self Sufficiency Program for reaching goals to increase their income, higher education and financial sufficiency.
The City of Chandler launched the Change-Up campaign that encourages residents to make contributions toward organizations that provide long-term solutions to improve the lives of people experiencing homelessness as an alternative to giving spare change to panhandlers.
A Day in the Life of Chandler’s Community Outreach Navigator
Community outreach navigators’ primary role is to meet people experiencing homelessness wherever they may be.
They act as a bridge for individuals, coordinating their access to programs and services that offer the help they need most.
HUD Grants Provide Home Repairs for Neighbors in Need
“These HUD grant funds provided to the City of Chandler allow those most in need — families or individuals with limited or fixed incomes — to be able to remain in their own homes, which may have become unsafe,” said Rick Smith, housing rehabilitation specialist with the City of Chandler.
“This prevents them from having to relocate or live in hazardous or life-threatening conditions.”