“Being a child of Bloomfield, this particular area holds a lot of memories for me. It means a lot to me, and it means a lot to my family,” said District 7 Commissioner Bill Howell before relating his own memories of different stores and restaurants that used to exist along Houston Avenue. “I’m proud to be standing here with all the partners involved. And while I and others have memories here, sometimes we have to move forward so others can make good memories here.”<\/p>\n
The focus on Houston Avenue is a joint effort by Macon-Bibb County and its departments, private contractors, First Choice Primary Care, Macon Area Habitat for Humanity, and more. First Choice Primary Care \u2013 thanks to investments from Macon-Bibb\u2019s American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds, the Peyton Anderson Foundation, and more \u2013 is opening a healthcare facility and pharmacy nearby to better serve families in the area.<\/p>\n
“Our Board has had a longstanding commitment to this neighborhood, but we are now, with support from the County and other funders, we are building a new primary care medical facility,” said Katherine McCleod, CEO of First Choice Primary Care. “We’ll be able to provide primary care to anyone, regardless of their ablity to pay. We will also have a pharmacy that will be open to anyone, and you may notice there are no other pharmacies in this area of town.”<\/p>\n
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In the past year, Macon-Bibb opened the new Frankie E. Lewis Park which includes a playground, pavilion, trail, and basketball courts\u2026and replaces several blighted structures that were there previously.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must be purposeful and intentional about strengthening our neighborhoods, and I\u2019m proud of the work being done here along Houston Avenue to remove the blight and begin building it all back up,\u201d said Mayor Miller.<\/p>\n
An additional $500,000 in ARP funds \u2013 which was matched by the Peyton Anderson Foundation \u2013 was provided to Habitat for Humanity to take the newly created empty lots in nearby Lynmore Estates, build new homes, and help families become strong homeowners. The mortgage payments from those homes will create a revolving fund that would help build new homes for many years to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must leverage all of our resources in our neighborhoods to truly address the needs of our friends and families because it doesn\u2019t matter which side of the county we live in, what happens to one of us\u2026happens to all of us,\u201d adds Mayor Miller. \u201cWe are all in this together.\u201d<\/p>\n
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