Marble Hill reunion group pushes to revitalize community

For 56-year-old Michael Mullens, the Marble Hill Reunion Weekend isn’t just about lighting up the grill to barbecue, kick back and rekindle old friendships. 

“It’s a day when we take the neighborhood back to where it was during the ’60s and ’70s,” said Mr. Mullens, a former Marble Hill resident who now resides in Plainfield, New Jersey. “It was a fine community. It takes a village to raise a child. This was the village. Today you don’t have that.” 

The three-day reunion celebration, organized by Marble Hill 225 Reunion & Redevelopment Project Inc., a neighborhood committee that Mr. Mullens is a part of, kicked off at Applebee’s on 225th Street and Broadway on Aug. 15. The next day, attendees participated in a street naming ceremony for legendary Marble Hill Olympian Ted Corbitt. A barbecue, children’s races and a dance at the American Legion Hall followed. 

To round out the weekend, residents gathered at St. Stephen’s United Methodist Church on West 228th Street for a service on Sunday led by  Rev. Joyce Taylor, the financial officer for Marble Hill 225. 

Ms. Taylor, 53, said that the reunion is an extension of a development project, which aims to inspire former and current residents to come together to make the Marble Hill community more vibrant. 

“There was so much here,” said Ms. Taylor, who remembers playing ping-pong, going to summer camp and playing outdoor games at Marble Hill Houses with friends during the ’60s. “We didn’t have to go outside of our community. It was a land full of resources. Now, we don’t see too many activities. There’s not much available to the younger community.”

According to Ms. Taylor, now that Marble Hill 225 has obtained federal tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) organization, it can receive grants, donations and scholarships to develop its kids program in conjunction with community programs offered by the New York City Housing Authority.