Revamped Fort Greene Association Expands In Goals And Audience

FORT GREENE, BROOKLYN — With newly-elected leaders and a full board for the first time in several years, the Fort Greene Association is in a bit of a renaissance.

The organization, first established in 1973, has four decades under its belt of advocating for everything from Fort Greene Park conservation, to establishing the neighborhood's historic district, to winning a rezoning fight to protect 99 residential blocks.

But with the neighborhood's unique diversity and recent influx of new development, it has set out with a new challenge — bringing people to the table.

"We want to expand our reach not just to young people, but people who have been living here for two years, two months, 20 years or 40 years," FGA's new Chair Hui-Ling Hsu said. "(We want) a diverse group of people in their backgrounds, cultures and opinions."

The make up of the organization has typically been those who have time to commit themselves to advocacy work, which naturally brings retirees or those with the longtime roots in the neighborhood, new treasurer Ben Richardson said.

Younger, newer residents often come to the meetings to speak about one issue or another — which is how Hsu and Richardson got involved themselves — but might not go that extra step of becoming members.

The new board of 11 members is hoping to change that.

"FGA is this platform that gives a megaphone for anybody in the neighborhood," Hsu said.

So far, initiatives such as membership drives with perks like tickets to a local show or even just expanding the group's meeting times are the most promising ideas to reach a larger crowd, Hsu and Richardson said.

The group has usually met at 7 p.m. on the third Monday of the month.

"If you're a family with young kids, that's bed, bath and dinner time," Richardson said. "We're thinking about what we can do on a Saturday afternoon with an activity and you can bring your kids."

Another tough audience to reach can be renters, since those residents might typically only stay in the neighborhood for a year or two. Richardson said the group has considered offering a "welcome packet" about FGA and the neighborhood for those new tenants.

"It’s like your new student folder for college," he said. "That’s an easy way for someone as they’re getting their key to their new apartment to say, 'Wow I’m part of the community.'"

Aside from expanding its audience, the organization's revamp has also included expanding the issues it tackles — or at least how it gets the word out about what those are. The influx of development in recent years has given some neighbors the impression that FGA only fights large developments, which is not the case, Hsu said.

"FGA has been many other things," she said. "We have a pretty wide reach and now that we have a full board, we are ready."

Part of that expansion was a "Fort Greene Arts + Culture" event and panel discussion they held in January. Over 100 people came out to hear local arts leaders from the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts, Mark Morris Dance Group and more.

The next meeting, scheduled for Feb. 11, will focus on small businesses and young entrepreneurs. It will include a panel discussion with some business owners from the community before attendees will break out into groups to talk about everything from how to start a business to parenting as an entrepreneur.

Each initiative throughout the year will focus on not only bringing people into the room, but having them stay to have a conversation, Richardson said.

"There’s a concern (that) we’re softening the image of FGA by expanding into new topics and losing the bite in important issues," Hsu added. "But, the real issue is, we don’t want to bite — we want to talk."

Photos by Ron Foster, provided by FGA.