Partners in Neighborhood Growth
Partners in Neighborhood Growth (PING) is a non-profit organization, founded in April 1981 by the City of Birmingham with Protective Life Insurance and United Way. It was created to provide recreational opportunities for low-income youth, particularly in public housing communities. Its executive director is Frank Horn, a former Birmingham Police officer. The organization's offices are located in the former Birmingham Fire Station No. 15 at 1345 Steiner Avenue near Woodward Park in West End.
PING organizes several youth athletic leagues for boys and girls, including basketball, softball, tee ball, volleyball, flag football, soccer, golf and tennis. It also partners with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Birmingham on mentoring programs, provides after-school educational programs, tutoring and homework assistance, and helps secure summer employment for high schoolers. All of PING's programs are provided at no cost to participants. Over 300 staffers volunteer their time and skills to the effort.
In November 1992 PING won a contract to operate fourteen recreation centers in the city, including seven located within public housing communities: Elyton Village, Morton Simpson Homes, Harris Homes, Loveman Village, Cooper Green Homes, Smithfield Court, and Roosevelt City.
In 2011 McCoy Inc. submitted a much lower bid to operate in those communities. Partners in Neighborhood Growth subsequently sued the Housing Authority for access to records of the bid process.
References
- Gray, Jeremy (May 29, 2011) "Partners in Neighborhood Growth sues Birmingham housing authority over open records laws." The Birmingham News
External links
- Partners in Neighborhood Growth website
- Birmingham Fire Station No. 15 (1928) on Google Street View