Focus groups are commonly used to conduct stakeholder analyses during community planning processes. This day of focus groups will be structured as affinity groups and will examine 1) how residents perceive current land use and housing dynamics, 2) resident notions of a dignified quality of life, and 3) the necessary interventions that would keep current residents living sustainably in the project area. Residents will also have an opportunity to share their oral histories regarding the legacy of the CAN community. 

The CAN project team will partner with service providers and decarceration advocates to facilitate a hybrid (virtual/in-person) design lab that centers formerly incarcerated or institutionalized residents of the CAN community. Participants will learn about and build upon community planning interventions that are preventative and restorative. Practitioners and City officials will learn ways they can establish programs and policies that support the long term housing stability of those who’ve been institutionalized or are at risk of institutionalization and their families.