West Lakes Partnership

In 2013, Lift Orlando was organized as a strategic alliance with Florida Citrus Sports and other partners dedicated to positive neighborhood revitalization. The early stages of resident engagement revealed a community of resident leaders willing to come together alongside LIFT Orlando to help create pathways of progress and opportunity for their neighbors. Since then, we’ve progressed hand-in-hand with residents to plan the redevelopment of the area, which residents renamed as “The Communities of West Lakes.”

The Communities of West Lakes are made up of the neighborhoods west of Parramore and east of Washington Shores or between Orange Blossom Trail and John Young Parkway. In these neighborhoods LIFT discovered an area with a rich African-American history including many residents who pushed through racial and economic inequality in the 1940-60’s to achieve success in business and in life. 

After the initial 30,000 hours of work conducted with the Polis Institute to reach nearly 1,500 residents, (35% of all residents in the area) and a series of meetings throughout the summer of 2014 important insights were shared. In those meetings, residents expressed their support for progress as well as their concerns about years of broken promises from various governmental entities and other groups.  From there, this effort grew to include larger and larger numbers of residents, with focused discussions on improving housing, increasing access to technology, spurring economic development, and revitalizing Lake Lorna Doone (to which Florida Citrus Sports pledged $1million in support). 

One very important idea emerged from that process: The creation of a resident-led advisory board of sorts to care for the interests of the area and to serve as the voice of the community. These resident leaders eventually formed a volunteer organization that identified the community’s most critical challenges and exciting opportunities. 

Today, West Lakes Partnership is a resident driven nonprofit organization aimed at strengthening and protecting our neighborhoods. West Lakes Partnership seeks to build pathways to stability, power and generational wealth alongside residents of West Lakes. This community development organization that was created by resident leaders to help ensure the preservation of the neighborhood’s cultural heritage by pursuing the mission of building pathways to stability, power, and generational wealth for the residents of West Lakes. Their key priorities include housing stabilization, homeownership and improved neighborhood amenities.

West Lakes Partnership practices resident-led, community engagement through a neighborhood newsletter and conversational community dinners designed to build shared understanding and make sure residents are in the know and have a voice at the table with regards to community initiatives. They also rehab vacant single family homes and create activities and projects to increase neighborhood pride and beautification. You can learn more about West Lakes Partnership by visiting their website at westlakespatnership.org