Oak Park Neighborhood Association

In November of 2001, Lauren Hammond and several longtime members of the community identified a need for the Oak Park community to have a neighborhood association. Prior to this time there were many separate groups doing great things in Oak Park. The five Oak Park Drug Free Zones, the Oak Park Business Association, the Oak Park Project Area Committee (PAC), Kinship, the Oak Park Neighborhood Multiservice Center staff, the Oak Park Community Center staff and many others were working hard to help revitalize the neighborhood. However, there was little coordination between all the different groups.

Councilmember Hammond discussed forming a Neighborhood Association with the city’s Neighborhood Services Department, but they did not have the resources to provide the level of attention that would be needed to bring all the groups together, so she contacted Jackie Boor at the Sacramento Mediation Center. The Sacramento Mediation Center had recently been successful in mediating issues between Harm Reduction Services and surrounding neighbors. Councilmember Hammond used District 5 Discretionary funds, along with some funding from SHRA and Neighborhood Services to hire the Sacramento Mediation Center to help with the formation of the Oak Park Neighborhood Association. By November 2002, a team of community leaders, facilitated by Jackie Boer of the Sacramento Mediation Center, was put together to create a neighborhood association that would help tie all the various groups together. The kickoff for the Oak Park Neighborhood Association was held on November 9, 2002 and the first regularly occurring meetings began the first Monday of the month in January 2003. During the first year, the meetings were used to get community input as to what OPNA’s mission and values were to be. In mid 2004, OPNA changed its meeting day to the first Thursday of the month to coincide with the popular Drug Free Zone’s (DFZ) “Cops & Coffee” meetings, which was already well established and drawing large audiences.

In January 2005, OPNA held their first election of officers and an official board to replace the all-volunteer steering committee. As they say, the rest is history. OPNA is one of the best resources for information about Oak Park, a great forum to discuss Oak Park issues and meet with representatives from government agencies who attend each meeting. Representatives from City, County, and State agencies field questions from neighbors and provide information on services and special events. OPNA partners with many groups to improve quality of life issues and help direct the future of Oak Park.