Placement: Proclamations and Special presentations
Action Requested: Discussion
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Award Presentation - Neighborhood Improvement and Community Engagement (NICE) Awards
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Submitted By: Bolivar Gomez, Project Manager
Strategic Plan Link: The City's Goal for vibrant neighborhoods.
Executive Summary (General Business): At the February 13th City Council meeting, Neighborhood Services Department staff will recognize the recipients of the 2022 NICE Awards.
Presentation Information: Staff will give an overview of the NICE Awards Program and present each recipient their respective award. The awards recognition will take approximately 10 minutes.
Background: The Neighborhood Improvement and Community Engagement (NICE) Awards celebrates the vibrant, diverse neighborhoods that contribute to Port St. Lucie’s unique charm and also recognizes the people, programs and accomplishments to help individual neighborhoods and the overall community. The Neighborhood Services Department is pleased to recognize and award those persons or organizations for contributing towards making our neighborhoods more vibrant.
Issues/Analysis: Residents were encouraged to nominate neighbors and/or agencies or groups for each of the available award categories. The following award categories were available for nomination: 1). NICE Community Involvement Award, 2). NICE Outstanding Neighbor of the Year Award, and 3). NICE Contributor of the Year Award. A fourth award, Neighborhood of the Year Award, is awarded each year to the neighborhood with the highest participation in the annual Keep Port St. Lucie Cleanup Day event. Nomination submissions were accepted from September 19th through December 9th, 2022, and applications were available on the Neighborhood Services Department - NICE webpage (www.cityofpsl.com/nice <http://www.cityofpsl.com/nice>). Following the submission deadline, an Awards Review Committee consisting of staff from Neighborhood Services, Public Works, Utilities, and Communications Department evaluated each submission and scored each entry using the established scoring criteria. The following are the 2022 NICE Award Recipients:
NICE Community Involvement Award - John Crawford. Mr. Crawford has been a member of the knights of Columbus as well as the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) and its honor guard, both of which help the community. He and his wife Joanne go out of their way to help with food drives and at Halloween they host a Trunk or Treat event. Mr. Crawford has also helped raise donations for the VVA at several Mets games and is always willing to go out of his way to help those in need.
NICE Outstanding Neighbor of the Year - Anthony Smith. Mr. Smith is awarded the Outstanding Neighbor of the Year Award for going above and beyond as a neighbor. Mr. Smith consistently checks in with his neighbors and looks out for everyone in the neighborhood. During the holidays, he takes it upon himself to create a memorable experience for the entire neighborhood whether it’s his epic haunted house for the kids, extraordinary Christmas decorations, or hosting an award-worthy fireworks display for everyone during the 4th of July. He does this each time with a smile on his face, just wanting to make the holidays the best for everyone in his neighborhood.
NICE Outstanding Neighborhood of the Year - Tradition. Tradition is awarded the Outstanding Neighborhood of the Year Award for having the highest neighborhood participation in the Keep Port St. Lucie Beautiful (KPSLB) Cleanup Day event held on April 30, 2022. The cleanup event is part of Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup, a nationwide movement to reduce litter in public areas and improve the natural environment of their city. Eighteen residents of Tradition attended and participated in the Port St. Lucie Cleanup Day Event. Tradition will be officially recognized on the plaque that is displayed in the City Hall lobby.
NICE Contributor of the Year - Helping Hands of Valencia Cay. In April 2022, Helping Hands of Valencia Cay reached out to the Children's Services Council of St. Lucie County to learn more about volunteer opportunities in their community. Following a presentation from Children’s Services Council - Community Engagement Coordinator and taking a specific interest in St. Lucie Reads initiative that supports grade-level reading efforts throughout St. Lucie County, members of the Helping Hands group became regular Children Services Council volunteers to support efforts to distribute books to children in St. Lucie County. Members of the group have spent more than 30 hours sorting and labeling over 20,000 books for distribution. Additionally, the volunteers have hosted drives to collect books to donate to Little Libraries as well as baby items for donation to several healthy baby programs. Helping Hands of Valencia Cay was founded to serve two goals: 1) Identify and co-partner with select area agencies and/or non-profits to organize Valencia Cay community-wide drives and collect items needed by an organization’s clients, and 2). Facilitate on-site group visits to select area agencies and/or non-profits welcoming Valencia Cay residents as a team to perform volunteer tasks.
Location of Project: Award recipients recognized have provided a benefit to various neighborhoods throughout the City of Port St. Lucie.
Attachments:
1. John Crawford - Nomination form
2. Anthony Smith - Nomination form
3. Helping Hands of Valencia Cay - Nomination form
4. NICE Awards Presentation
Internal Reference Number: N/A
Legal Sufficiency Review:
N/A