Our History
In 1998,
residents from economically distressed communities across O`ahu
launched a “grassroots” effort to plan for a sustainable economic
future and prepare Honolulu’s Empowerment Zone (EZ) application to the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The effort
involved more than 150,000 volunteer hours and thousands of residents
from low and moderate income (LMI) communities in community
conversations and working sessions over a three-year period. The
product of this effort was an initial 1998 O`ahu EZ Strategic Plan and
an updated version of the plan in 2001.
During
that process, Empower O`ahu was formed on an interim basis to implement
the EZ Strategic Plan. The Empowerment Zone application was not
approved by HUD but, the communities involved in its development felt
strongly about sustaining the community economic empowerment process on
O`ahu. In 2000, Empower O`ahu was formally incorporated as a 501c(3) nonprofit corporation for this
purpose.
Community Implementation Groups (CIGs)
Empower
O`ahu is made up of six communities including: Aiea, Ewa Beach,
Kalihi-Chinatown, Wahiawa, Waialua, and Waipahu.
These communities are known as Community Implementation Groups (CIGs)
and are responsible for implementing the community developed strategic
plans.
Empower O`ahu is
an island-wide governing entity designed to support the individual CIGs
as they further develop and implement their strategic plans and
maximize the impact of community-based implementation activities by
addressing regional, inter-community, and island-wide issues,
strategies, and concerns. |