A wonderful project has come to fruition, thanks to the collaboration and kinship between Olivet Baptist Church and Friendship Manor. On Thursday, June 7th there will be a ribbon cutting by the QC Chamber of Commerce, along with a block party on the corner of 11th Street and 21st Avenue. The event is for neighbors and friends to celebrate the completion of the West Entrance Beautification and Urban Renewal Project.
For the last several years, it had become apparent that an improvement was needed to the entrance of Friendship Manor and Olivet Church along 11th Street at 21st Avenue. Like many urban highway routes, the scenery wasn’t always welcoming. But thanks to several neighborhood partners, generous donors, the City of Rock Island, and Friendship Manor founders (The King’s Daughters and Sons), the West Entrance Beautification and Urban Renewal Project started taking place.
The components of the West Entrance Beautification and Urban Renewal Project (WEB and URP) included a new parking lot, a welcome way to the “Friendship Neighborhood” on the NE corner of 11th Street and 21st Avenue, a complementing welcome on the SE corner, removal of an unattractive house in the 1100 block of 21st Avenue, and removal of the Salvation Army building which had become available.
In early 2017, the parking lot was completed and shared with Friendship Manor’s neighbor at Olivet Baptist Church. When the Salvation Army property became available, the Manor’s vision for an entire city block took shape. Manor management met with Salvation Army personnel and thanks to a generous gift by an anonymous donor, the property was purchased in April of 2017.
The Manor already had artistic renderings of their vision for the SE corner of 11th & 21st. That piece of WEB and URP had three phases, but the Salvation Army piece was really a “leap frog” over two city owned parcels. Ted Pappas, president and CEO of Friendship Manor states, “There was no point in obtaining the Salvation Army property unless we could also own and control the corner pieces, which enabled the welcome signage and a contiguous development. Manor management met with the City of Rock Island and asked for the two needed parcels, and they generously agreed!”
With assets, generous donations and help from the City of Rock Island, the “Friendship Neighborhood” has a new welcome way complete with monument sign, plants and flowers. At the celebration with the QC Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting and neighborhood block party on June 7th from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Friendship Manor and Olivet Baptist Church will be providing refreshments, entertainment and tours of the Manor and Olivet to visitors.