Mayor's Neighborhood Corps Knocking on Doors

CHARLESTON - A team of 16 young adults with the latest technology have been hitting the streets of Charleston this summer as part of Mayor Joseph Riley's campaign for his 10th term.

Joe's Neighborhood Corps, led by Brandon Upson, have held more than 14,000 conversations with Charleston residents all over the city. The campaign workers carry iPads to keep track of the addresses they visit and the concerns and issues that are troubling the residents.

"After talking to about 14,000 people, the top three issues are traffic, drainage and education," Upson said.

The Neighborhood Corps is almost as much a local civics lesson as it is an arm of a political campaign, Upson said, as Corps members often hear concerns from residents that fall outside of the city's jurisdiction, such as education, which is controlled at the county level.

"The mayor doesn't have a lot of influence over education," Upson said. "But he's always been a champion of education."

Riley joined the Neighborhood Corps Friday afternoon as members canvassed East Oak Forrest.

"What we're really proud of is what's not in the top three and that's crime," Riley said. "That's something we work hard on everyday."

Riley creditied the Charleston Police Department's focus on reaching out to and connecting with citizens for the more than 50 percent decline in violent crime reported in the city over the past three years, something that was highlighted in Chief Greg Mullen's recent State of the Department Report to City Council.

Riley soent about an hour walking the street with Upson and other Corps volunteers and spoke with several residents about their concerns, before heading back downtown.

"Charleston encompasses a large area," Upson said. "Everyone deserves to have their conerns addressed."

Most of the Neighborhood Corps are college students, and all of the volunteers are young. In addition to working on the iPads, Upson said they are encouraged to use Facebook and Twitter to connect with as many people as possible.

"We're big time on the technology on this," Upson said. "The mayor understands we have to work with the technology to reach people."

Melanie Holland is one of the Corps members, and a rising senior at College of Charleston.

"I only ever related to Charleston as a college student before," Holland said. "I finally get to see Charleston as a community, to have an impact in the community I've called home for the last three years."

While in the field, the Corps splits into pairs to knock on doors and gather information. Each pair will hit about 120 doors a day. Combined, the eight sets of partners will hold between 500 and 700 conversations with residents each day, Holland said.

"Drainage is an issue all over," she said. "But there are different concerns in each area of the city. People on John's Island want more pedestrian and bike acces."

Joe's Neighborhood Corps is funded through Riley's campaign.