Lend A Hand: “A Neighborhood Vitality Program”
Having problems in your neighborhood? Click on the Whose Job Is It? link and find out who to contact for help or the Neighborhood Connection PDF for a complete list of resources.
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"This program is just what some people need:
Not a hand out, just a hand."
- Olga Ferguson, resident on Millar Avenue |
Community Development Vision: El Cajon CDC envisions a healthy and vibrant community. We define a healthy and vibrant community as:
- An environment that is clean and safe
- One that provides quality housing for all residents
- A home to residents who are empowered and feel a sense of community pride and ownership
- A space to celebrate the uniqueness of the place and people which make up the community
WHAT IS LEND A HAND NEIGHBORHOOD REVITALIZATION?
Saturday Morning Clean-ups
We BELIEVE everyone can do their part to make Downtown El Cajon a brighter place to live.
Special Saturday Morning Clean-up and "Going Green" E-waste Event
Saturday, June 27
100 Block of East Douglas Avenue
In the large parking lot
(be sure to look for the directional signs)
Saturday Morning Clean-up
9:00 - 11:00 am
E-Waste Collection
8:00 am - 3:00 pm
Any cancellations due to weather will be announced on this page
Residents, business owners, and community-minded individuals come together to remove trash and graffiti in the neighborhoods of Downtown El Cajon. Since 2006, Saturday Morning Clean-ups have engaged over 1,000 individuals, removed 575 graffiti incidences, collected 17,302 gallons of trash, and 15,902 pounds of electronic waste. Join El Cajon CDC for Lend A Hand’s Saturday Morning Clean-up! Spend your morning making a difference by working together. RSVP with the El Cajon CDC by calling our office at (619) 401-8858 or email Rebecca Reyes, Community Development Assistant. For a complete listing of all the Saturday Morning Clean-ups dates in 2009, please click here (PDF). Be sure to check the website each month for location details.
FREE Electronic Waste Drop off for:
- Computers
- Monitors
- Laptops
- Old TVs
- Printers
- Cell Phones
- Fax Machines
- VCRs
- DVD Players
- Stereos
- Cameras
Scanners
- And More!
- No appliances please
All electronic waste is safely disposed of by Electronic Recyclers International. They are certified with the State of California.
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Remove Trash |
Identify Graffiti to be Removed |
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Meet Your Neighbors |
Recycle Electronic Waste &
Donate Obsolete Household Items |
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UArt: Downtown El Cajon's Utility Art Box Program
  We BELIEVE communities come alive with Arts and Culture.
Serve Your Community, Paint a Utility Box
We celebrate local artwork. We encourage local talent to share their artistic skills through painting tired utility boxes. Vibrant artwork helps deter unsightly nuisance from our neighborhoods and create beautiful spaces for everyone to enjoy.
Get your artwork recognized in Downtown El Cajon by painting a utility box! Donating your time to this meaningful activity will make you a part of the beautiful Downtown landscape for years to come. If you would like to share your artistic talent with the residents and visitors of Downtown El Cajon, please click here (PDF) to learn all about the process, rules, and guidelines. Then contact Christina Burke, Community Development Coordinator, at (619) 401-8858 to get involved.
Learn more about the UArt program by watching us on Fox Channel 6's morning show San Diego Living. Just click here!
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Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design – C.P.T.E.D
We BELIEVE in designing spaces that communities can live and play in safely.
Through a partnership with the El Cajon Police Department Crime Free Multi-Housing Program, our neighborhood rehab and improvement projects implement simple design techniques that may lead to a reduction in fear and incidence of crime in our neighborhoods. Design standards such as ample lighting, manicured landscaping, clear pathways, and defined spaces are some of the factors that determine safety. We actively encourage homeowners to apply crime prevention principles to building or remodeling to create a safer, more active and aware community.
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Neighborhood Restoration: Lend A Hand Day
We BELIEVE in quality, affordable housing.
Every eighteen months this extensive neighborhood rehabilitation project serves to dramatically restore a low to moderate income neighborhood in Downtown El Cajon. Over a six month period, hundreds of skilled volunteers join forces on three separate work days to transform tired landscapes, build new fences, provide exterior repairs, and renovate homes with a fresh coat of paint.
Lend A Hand Day Before and After |
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As part of this process, residents of the chosen restoration block are strongly encouraged to attend corresponding neighborhood meetings to sustain the physical improvements. Residents are able to witness quick wins in their community that jumpstart the road to community awareness, action, and empowerment. They are able to build relationships with their neighbors, learn about resources available to them, and develop leadership skills as they form a neighborhood group to create a healthy, long-lasting impact on the block.
From working hard on the block to forming a neighborhood group, Millar residents are committed to creating a strong neighborhood.
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Millar neighbors work together to tear down the decaying fence on their shared property. |
Members of the Friends and Neighbors Neighborhood Group gather for their monthly meeting. |
Over 100 neighbors gather over food and fun for a resident organized safety social.
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WHAT IS LEND A HAND COMMUNITY EDUCATION?
 Neighborhood Meetings
We BELIEVE community members want to be part of great change to benefit their immediate circumstances and leave a lasting impact for future generations.
We help neighbors get to know one another, solve neighborhood concerns, and celebrate their neighborhood. With our support, resident driven neighborhood associations are formed that increase awareness of civic life, improve access to resources, build neighborhood networks, and fortify neighborhood trust.
Contact Christina Burke, Community Development Coordinator, at (619) 401-8858 to find out about how you can start your own neighborhood group!
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 Listening Campaigns
We BELIEVE community members know the needs of their own environment.
This comprehensive survey allows residents to openly communicate personal visions for the future of their community while providing an opportunity to express positive and negative attributes of the neighborhood. The survey is particularly useful tool because it meaningfully initiates relationship building and allows our team to identify resident leaders for community meetings in the process.
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Community Presentations
We BELIEVE every once in a while in life we get placed in a position from which we can have a most positive impact on the outcome of events. Now is that time.
We coordinate presentations for civic minded groups interested in lending a hand to neighborhoods in need. All of our neighborhood activities are volunteer driven and your organization can make a difference in Downtown El Cajon. Contact Christina Burke, Community Development Coordinator, at (619) 401-8858 to schedule a Lend A Hand Orientation for your group today.
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Neighborhood Trainings
We BELIEVE everyone can have access to skills and knowledge that lead to knowledge and empowerment
We connect residents to resources and encourage resident leadership and development. Training topics include: asset-mapping; discovering strengths; ownership and accountability; conflict resolution; creating a shared vision; and becoming a leader. El Cajon CDC staff also teaches residents how to work cooperatively with the Police Department, other city agencies, and local organizations. Presentations have been made by: El Cajon Police Department Crime Free Multi-Family Housing, El Cajon Police Department Neighborhood Watch, East County Family Justice Center, and Institute for Public Strategies Safe Streets Program.
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