Rebuilding Downtown Longfellow Together
Rebuilding Downtown Longfellow with equity, sustainability and belonging
Longfellow Rising is rebuilding Downtown Longfellow in the wake of the police murder of George Floyd, honoring the uprising through collaborative, community-led redevelopment. We center BIPOC ownership, strengthen social infrastructure, and reimagine buildings as places for gathering, healing, and belonging.
Who We Are
A community-led effort creating long term change
Longfellow Rising is a collaboration of business owners, artists, cultural workers, residents, and local organizations working toward an equitable and sustainable Downtown Longfellow. Our work blends community voice, economic recovery, cultural healing, and the arts with BIPOC leadership at the center.
Our Unique Values
Longfellow Rising is a community-led effort to rebuild Downtown Longfellow by centering relationships, advancing equity, and creating spaces where people can gather, heal, and belong. Our work is guided by those who live, work, and organize here, with a long-term commitment to cultural vitality, environmental care, and shared prosperity.
Community-led, relationship-driven
We build change through connection. Every project, partnership, and plan starts with the voices of the people who live and work here.
Equity in action
Equity is our foundation. We prioritize those historically excluded from decision-making and make sure resources reach them first.
Cultural healing as rebuilding
Recovery is more than redevelopment. Healing through art, storytelling, and shared space restores trust and belonging.
Sustainability with accountability
We plan for the long term, not short term fixes. That includes stability for residents and small businesses, along with ecological practices that increase green space, conserve resources, and reduce environmental impact.
At every step, the focus stays on people before profit.
Equity as a Daily Practice
Guided by lived experience
We center equity not as a value we talk about but as a daily practice. Our leadership reflects the communities we serve, including BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ residents, business owners, and artists with lived experience in this neighborhood. Each initiative begins with two guiding questions: Who benefits, and who has a voice in the work?
Event Grants
Investing in creativity as community infrastructure
Through our Event Grants, we have supported 30+ events led by artists and organizers rooted in the community. These gatherings bring neighbors together, strengthen cultural identity, and help build a Downtown Longfellow where belonging is felt and visible.
Make a gift to keep our work possible
Community insight directs our priorities
We ground our programs in what local stakeholders tell us. Surveys, conversations, and lived stories help us understand real needs and shape initiatives that reflect the experiences of neighbors and small businesses. Our Parking Survey is one example of how community knowledge drives the work.
Our Events
From cultural celebrations to community workshops, our events create space for visioning, healing, and collaboration. Each gathering strengthens relationships and supports a more equitable and connected Downtown Longfellow.
Get Involved
Get Involved
Gatherings that build connection and collective purpose
There are many ways to join the work. Attend an event, share your perspective, volunteer, or support cultural grants. Longfellow Rising grows through the participation of neighbors who believe in an equitable, creative, and sustainable future for Downtown Longfellow.