One of Houston's most neglected areas has new hope. Seven organizations have come together to form the Northern Third Ward Consortium. The coalition's goal is to develop a plan to revitalize the area.Helen Stagg with Change Happens, a member organization, said the plan will be driven by residents, according to Houston Public Media,. “We’ll be going door to door to talk with people about what they see as their needs and priorities. We’ll be holding community meetings and community forums.”

To get things started, the consortium received a $100k planning grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation for the 2.57 square miles bounded by US 59 to the west, I-45 to the north, Cullen Street to the east and Blodgett Street to the south.

The NTW Consortium is a strategic alliance that includes Change Happens, Change Happens CDC, Project Row Houses, Row House CDC, The University of Houston, Wheeler Avenue Triangle Ministries and the William A. Lawson Institute for Peace and Prosperity.

The goal is to have the plan finalized by June 2017, submit it to Wells Fargo and hopefully receive more funds for implementation. [HPM]