Beyond NIAs: The Ruthless Elimination of Struggle

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Beyond NIAs: The Ruthless Elimination of Struggle

One of the most challenging parts of living in an under-resourced neighborhood is that you need resources. And often, to get those resources, you have to sell your story and sell the need you have. Sometimes that becomes dehumanizing, because the only thing people know about you is your struggle. No matter how far you grow beyond that struggle, because you have told the story so often, it becomes the only thing people recognize. At first, it feels like a way to take the next step and get what you need. But eventually, you realize you are more than your struggle. Many neighborhoods that are under-resourced form Neighborhood Improvement Associations (NIAs). Regulations define what is required to organize them, and neighborhoods often become known by their improvement associations. But under-resourced neighborhoods hold so much good, and residents want to be known for more than their struggle. They want to be known for their relationships, their achievements, and the joy they find in community.

In Topeka’s framework for neighborhood health and civic engagement, NIAs play a critical role. An NIA is a city-recognized, formal organization. To qualify, a neighborhood must have at least 25 petition signatures from people with a definable interest (residents, property owners, businesses), define its boundaries, adopt bylaws, elect officers, and hold regular meetings. Crucially, at least 51% of households must have incomes below 80% of Topeka’s Area Median Income (AMI). In contrast, a Neighborhood Association (NA) is voluntary, more flexible in membership, and not bound by those eligibility requirements—an expression of neighborhood identity, self-determination, and sustainability.

Hi-Crest has long been among Topeka’s neighborhoods working this path. Using the City’s five “Vital Sign” indicators for neighborhood health—poverty, public safety (Part I crime per capita), housing/property values, homeownership tenure, and unsafe/secured structures—the City calculates composite health scores roughly every 3–4 years. The health categories run from “Intensive Care” through “At Risk” and up to “Healthy.”

Hi-Crest West is defined by block groups 29:4, 29:1, and 29:2. In the early 2000s these areas scored around 1.4 on the City’s scale, placing them in Intensive Care. Over time progress was uneven, but by 2020 block groups 29:1 and 29:2 both achieved an “At Risk” rating while 29:4 remained in Intensive Care. The 2023 update confirmed this pattern: 29:1 and 29:2 are holding steady in the At Risk category, while 29:4 continues to struggle in Intensive Care. This demonstrates both real progress and the reality that improvement is not uniform across the West side.

Hi-Crest East is defined by block groups 30:11, 30:12, and 30:21. These areas now show remarkable diversity. In 2023, block groups 30:11 and 30:21 reached the “Healthy” category, marking a major milestone. Block group 30:12 is rated “Outpatient,” showing progress but still short of the Healthy threshold. These results illustrate how parts of East have leapt ahead, while one block group continues to climb steadily but more slowly.

The 2023 scores confirm Hi-Crest is healthier today than it was two decades ago. Some blocks are Healthy, others are At Risk, and one remains in Intensive Care. Crime has declined dramatically—down about 66 percent since 2005 and another 29 percent since the launch of Fellowship Hi-Crest and SENT Inc. in 2018. This progress reflects a deep community engagement: resident presence in meetings, youth programming, neighborhood watch at a time in its history, beautification, and partnerships that make streets safer and more welcoming.

At the same time, uneven growth means residents in the same neighborhood can experience very different daily realities. A family in block group 30:11 or 30:21 may enjoy the stability of a Healthy neighborhood with safer streets and stronger property values, while a neighbor in 29:4 still contends with blight, weaker property upkeep, and slower crime reduction. These differences affect how people feel about their neighborhood and how much trust they place in change. What unites us, however, is the recognition that progress in one part of Hi-Crest must become progress for all. Every block’s well-being is tied together, and lasting transformation depends on lifting each other up so the entire community moves forward as one.

Organizations like SENT Inc. and Fellowship Hi-Crest, along with many other partners and individuals who have been and are a part of this effort, are central to this upward trend. Their support shows up in helping residents organize and claim leadership roles, aligning projects with the City’s indicators, mobilizing community energy through cleanups and partnerships, and amplifying every win so that perceptions and measurable health move forward together.

Yet the ultimate goal is not to remain an NIA forever. NIAs were never meant to be permanent fixtures; they were designed as on-ramps. The true sign of health is when a neighborhood matures into a Neighborhood Association—when its identity is no longer tied to economic thresholds or outside recognition but to love, mutual purpose, and connectedness. The elimination of NIAs should not mean the end of relationships, gatherings, or collaborative work. Instead, it should mean that the neighborhood has outgrown the need for the label of “improvement.” It should mean that everyone ate, that everyone—or at least the majority of the community—is in a better place because they stayed and worked together.

A thriving NA shows that neighbors have built something lasting: a voluntary, resident-led body where bonds are not rooted in chronic struggle but in shared vision. That is the future worth striving for—a community sustained by choice, resilience, and hope, where the elimination of NIAs signals not loss but arrival at a better way of living together.

City of Topeka Codes & Policies

Neighborhood Health Framework

  • City of Topeka Planning Department – Neighborhood Health Methodology (five indicators: poverty, public safety, property value, tenure, unsafe/secured structures; health categories: Healthy, Out Patient, At Risk, Intensive Care) Topeka Neighborhood Health Indicators (also explained in Planning Department reports & Executive Summaries)

Hi-Crest Data

  • City of Topeka – Neighborhood Health Executive Summary 2020 2023 Hi-Crest Neighborhood Health PDF (historical scores for Hi-Crest block groups, showing 2000–2020 trends)
  • City of Topeka – Neighborhood Health Report 2023 (Hi-Crest) PDF with block-group composite scores:
      • 29:4 = Intensive Care
      • 29:1 = At Risk
      • 29:2 = At Risk
      • 30:11 = Healthy
      • 30:12 = Outpatient
      • 30:21 = Healthy

Crime Reduction

  • SENT Inc. – Blog Post (March 4, 2025) “Since the launch of Fellowship Hi-Crest and SENT, reported crimes have dropped another 29%” – Crime is down 29% since SENT/Fellowship launched, and ~66% since 2005. SENT Topeka Blog Post
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