Conversations with Carl Stafford

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carl Stafford.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
MY REGION WINS! (MRW!), Kansas City’s Creative Nonprofit Organization was established in 2014 with the mission to ‘transcend everyday challenges’ by using the Arts to nurture creative and undeveloped ideas that shape society. The objective is to help people pursue their aspirational goals and dreams while using Art and Nature to address environmental and social injustices and issues.

This came about after graduating from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2006. Realizing that as an Artist, it’s important to have critiques and resources and the lack of this in society was apparent. There are public libraries and community centers, neither had nor have drawing easels, a light table, green screen, computers with editing software, any of the resources that were available at Art school. And who was able (qualified) to critique my work as an Artist?

In 2016, after constantly being told “you need to be in a storefront,” rather than a basement, on-site, or reserving the Southeast Library conference room to meet. MRW! obtained a vacant lot owned by Land Bank. This is when the mission became a calling. This vacant property was in a disinvested business zone This business zone has 11 properties, 5 vacant lots, 5 houses, and one small building. Was told that the lot MRW! obtained used to be a 3-storefront (a law firm, gadget repair, and dry cleaners), before the building was torn down.

It was interesting to me how a business zone would have no business. The small building had been empty for years, it was remodeled in 2019 and since has opened as a corner store. The 5 houses are rental properties, not like the houses in business zones that are in other Districts that have been turned into small businesses. Starting to look at all the business zones (especially the B1-1) on the west side of District 5 and realized that most of them have either churches, houses that are rental properties, vacant lots (owned by Land Bank or Housing Authority), corner stores, liquor stores, cell phone stores, or used car lots. They are everywhere. This was alarming to me. Where were the attractions for the west side of District 5?

The west side of District 5 used to have an amusement park (Fairyland, 75th Prospect). True, blacks were only allowed Fridays but still; it even had a drive-in. Recall seeing the Wildcat (a rollercoaster at Fairyland) every morning thinking how it would be to ride my bike to an amusement park. Worlds of Fun was so far away at the age of eight. There was a second drive-in off 63rd street. You could see the movie playing from 435hwy. Had a few movie theaters, a couple of bowling alleys with arcades, one with daycare, and both of them had 21&up pool halls. Heck, there was Bannister Mall that had a movie theater, arcade, food court, shopping, and so forth. All that is gone.

Why had the west side of District 5 been disinvested in? Why were District 3 and the northeast parts of District 4 looking the same? Again, this is when the mission/calling grew stronger. This disinvestment was not an accident. It was the vision of the creators of white flight and redlining. Their vision in 1945 was for whites to leave these 3 areas for 100-years because there would be an influx of blacks coming to Kansas City after WW2 and certain whites did not like that.

This practice (white flight and redlining) that was created in 1945 spread across the nation. The practice of redlining (banks not giving loans to black homeowners to fix their homes) lead to 1,000’s of homes having to be torn down resulting in the 1,000s vacant properties, now owned by Land Bank & Housing Authority to hold on to until a capitalist can obtain the property(s) and develop on it. A number of the properties have had their waterlines disconnected or never had a connection, meaning the new owner would need to spend $10,000 to connect the water. How has that kind of money? Surely not those living in the area. The mission/calling began being fueled as all this was being discovered.

Over the next few years, the idea of having Art and Nature sits prominently at the table to address environmental and social injustices and issues began to develop. As an Artist, these vacant lots are blank canvases. Through beautification MRW! will revive the west side of District 5. In 2019, MRW! received support (funding) from Heartland Conservation Alliance and in 2020 From blight to BOON! was created, MRW!’s our 100-year plan.

To see and use the natural resources we have (land and stormwater) as assets (like Alaska does with oil) and create revenue generators for the 100+-neighborhoods that have been negatively impacted by white flight, redlining, and gentrification.

Now, these neighborhoods can start to become self-sustaining, the neighborhoods could become 501c3 or c4 tax-exempt, they can work with banks, they obtain and develop property in their neighborhood, the neighborhood could stipend residents who take on one of over 40-Officer Titles that are available to be held within neighborhoods.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all. Lack of funding is a real struggle. Having a full-time job working over 50-hours a week leaves little energy (mentality and physically) to constantly maximize opportunities. Being watched to ‘see if you pull it off’ rather than being joined to help pull it off is a struggle.

The WIIFM (what’s in it for me) community is real, if they don’t see a benefit for them, it’s hard to get them to engage. Working with the city is a challenge, the lack of support/help received from them is humbling. Realizing the city’s stands regarding its history is at times a tough pill to swallow.

The verbiage has changed while the agenda is still the same, full speed ahead. Social media, marketing is challenging.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Help in the pursuit of aspirational goals and dreams. What do you specialize in? Visioning. Sharing my visions and helping others with theirs. My passion is to revive the west side of District 5. Being recognized as the 2021 Innovator to Watch by Grinnell College.

A black man, under 50, founder of a nonprofit (in the field of Art and Nature), and the current president of Gregory Ridge Neighborhood, where is there another like me? Who else is trying to harvest and distill rainwater to stipend residents? Who else is trying to get neighborhoods to obtain their 501c3, c4 tax-exempt status so they may obtain some of the vacant Land Bank and Housing Authority properties, and develop them into revenue generators for the neighborhood?

Who else is trying to get the city to invest $4k a month for a year into the 100-neighborhoods that have been negatively impacted by white flight, redlining, and gentrification?

What do you think about happiness?
ME. Happiness starts with me. Why? Why not? Who can make me happier than myself? Who knows me better than myself? My vision of the future makes me happy. The fact my vision can be as great if not greater than the vision that was created in 1945 makes me happy. The progress MRW! has made makes me happy, MRW! will be turning 8 years old on April 9th! That makes me happy. Sharing my story makes me happy. Knowing there is a chance to go down in history, become an Art slide ID, or written in history books makes me happy. Making a difference makes me happy. Seeing others be great and pursue their aspirational goals and dreams makes me happy.

Being able to assist people with their aspirational goals and dreams makes me happy. Being sought after makes me happy.

Pricing:

• $1.92 million dollars to stipend the 40-neighborhoods on the west side of District 5, $4k a month for one year.
• $4.8 million dollars to stipend 100-neighborhoods $4k a month for one year.
• $12.29 million dollars to stipend all neighborhoods in Kansas City, Mo.
• $1 million dollars will allow MRW! to obtain, restore, and develop a number of the vacant Land Bank and Housing Authority properties on the west side of District 5 starting with BOON AREA 1.
• $10 million dollars will allow MRW! to obtain, fix, and maintain the vacant buildings on the west side of District 5.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.myregionwins.org
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MYREGIONWINS

Image Credits
Vision Designs by Jonathan Brice Lyman