Super Bowl's legacy lasts beyond game for near east side neighborhood

St. Clair Neighborhood Place resident Donald Boykins said the pride he feels is almost indescribable.

"You feel like you are home, when you get that home feeling, not just 'this is where I am living at,' it is not like that. Home," said Boykins.

Boykins' "home" was one of 32 built in the St. Clair Place Neighborhood on the city's near east side. The project was part of the Super Bowl Legacy Project, geared toward families that need a hand up and neighborhoods that need major improvements.

"The neighborhood is rich, with joyful people who just need a break," said Boykins. "That is all, and this is the break that they need right here."

A total of $1 million was awarded to the project's organizers. The local effort turned that $1 million into $154 million. Bill Hacker of the REALTOR Foundation said the plan to breathe new life into St. Clair Place was already in the works. Hacker said the Super Bowl put the project into overdrive. 
"It is a wonderful combination of the fun, the party of the game, but look what good it did for the neighborhood and the whole region," said Hacker.

All 32 homes now have medallions near the doorway, marking the Legacy Project effort. Ruth Shaw has lived in St. Clair Place for 37 years. She said she has seen it go from bad, to worse, to better, but she is not content.

"We do not want it to stop here," said Shaw. "There are too many other people out here that need these opportunities and we have to find a way to make these opportunities be there for them."

Boykins predicted that this is only the beginning.

"Good things bring good people," Boykins. "These houses that they have built, 32 homes, is a good thing so it is bringing in good people."