Frayser is one of the largest neighborhoods in Memphis, stretching north from the city’s urban core to the rural Shelby Forest across more than 20 square miles. It is one of the city’s most disinvested neighborhoods but is rich with community activism. The resident-led Frayser 2020 community revitalization plan is focused on growing youth, reducing crime, and investing in infrastructure and amenities while the annual Frayser Festival celebrates the community’s bright spots. Frayser is home to many small businesses as well as Nike’s $301 million distribution center.
On S1E13 of the On the Ground Podcast, Roshun Austin of The Works, Inc. and Austin Harrison of Neighborhood Preservation Inc. examine a redlining map from the 1930s, its implications for modern-day Memphis and local strategies to breakdown housing inequality 85 years after redlining was introduced and 50 years since it was outlawed.
In S1E11 of the On the Ground Podcast, Professional actors Ann Wallace and Leslie Jones of Playback Memphis share how live improv theater can help kids improve social-emotional learning and build healthy relationships.
In S1E9 of the On The Ground Podcast, Ebony Archie from UrbanArt Commission and local artist Khara Woods discuss public art installations in Uptown and Frayser that are designed around themes of sustainability and environmental issues.
In S1E4, High Ground News publisher Emily Trenholm welcomes Steve Lockwood from Frayser CDC and Amy Schaftlein from United Housing to discuss why homeownership is so important to stabilizing Memphis neighborhoods and what strategies community development organizations are using to turn longtime renters into homeowners.
Three Memphis neighborhoods — Frayser, Uptown and Orange Mound — are set to be the recipients of art installations that will add vibrancy and livability to the communities, as well as inform and unite residents around solutions to lingering environmental issues, like dumping and littering.
In 2017, 90 percent of Frayser home purchases were from landlords or investors, most out of state. Frayser CDC's new Home Ownership Campaign is reversing that trend by helping residents buy homes for half the cost of renting.
The public art exhibit that crosses Memphis neighborhoods from Orange Mound to Frayser does more than anything before to break down the barriers between the Brooks Museum and the community it serves or, as even some fans might point out, underserves.
A new program in Frayser is using technology to build kids' conversation skills before they’ve even learned to talk. Partners at Agape and University of Memphis say talking is critical to healthy growth and kindergarten readiness and helps underprivileged families level the educational playing field.
Agape, a Memphis nonprofit, works with students at Whitney Achievement Elementary and 15 other schools to help students with attendance and behavior.
Frayser's Hagar Center and its partners are hosting a diaper drive as first step toward a free diaper bank for Memphis and Shelby County. It's a step they say is critical to helping at-risk moms and babies succeed.
Our Partners
