We held our first-ever Block Party in July 2024. Our goal was to help neighbours build new connections and grow our Block Watch group, potentially making our community a safer place. Our Block Party was successful in achieving these goals.
We had a team of 3 neighbours organize the Block Party. Together we completed paperwork, designed the flyers, planned food and activities, shopped for food and prizes, co-ordinated with our funding partners, obtained signatures for a road closure, and set-up for and cleaned up after the Block Party. For food, we barbequed hot dogs and also offered cold drinks, watermelon, local blueberries, freezies, chips, and cookies. For activities, we had sidewalk chalk and giant bubbles for the kids. We also advertised a prize draw to entice neighbours to attend the party. For building a safer community, we were pleased that the Richmond RCMP Community Engagement team accepted our invitation to attend our Block Party. Volunteers and police officers from their team gave us a safety talk, brought a police vehicle to explore, and brought two games where we could learn safety and crime prevention tips.
The biggest challenge was obtaining permission for a road closure. The City of Richmond required us to obtain signatures from neighbours who would be affected by the road closure, as well as apply for the road closure through their new Block Party program, which was offered after we were granted funding for a Block Party through the Neighbourhood Small Grant program. This meant more paperwork for us as we then had to apply to another program, as well as complete two reports after the event. At the City’s request, we went through two rounds of collecting signatures from neighbours. Although this led to a successful application to close the road, it was a bit frustrating and an inefficient use of time with already limited planning resources. Road closures for events like Block Watch give visitors a safe place to connect and participate in fun activities. We feel this process could have been better streamlined and better supported.
As a result of our Block Party, we were able to make face-to-face connections, new connections were formed, and new families joined our Block Watch program. We set up a table with a Block Watch sign-up sheet, as well as information pamphlets. Our Block Watch group grew by nearly 50% within 2 hours! There were approximately 50 attendees. It was a great opportunity for long-time residents to meet with new residents. Kids in the same neighbourhood but attending different elementary schools got to meet each other and have a fun afternoon together playing while learning about safety. With these new connections and growth of our Block Watch membership, we are confident that our community will continue to benefit from this program.
