If you care about neighborhoods, HEADS UP!  Registration brochures for Neighborhoods USA (NUSA) '99, the biggest and best annual neighborhoods conference in the country will be available March 1.  If you're interested in attending, now's the time to call conference organizers to get your name on the mailing list.

NUSA '99:  Building Neighborhoods Block by Block Conference will be held Wednesday, May 26 through Saturday, May 29, 1999 in Madison, Wisconsin at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Monona Terrace Conference and Community Center on Lake Monona. The NUSA Conference is an annual event that draws between 600-1,000 neighborhood association leaders and activists, planners and non-profit organization staff.  The conference registration fee is $135.

This is going to be a great conference.   The keynote speaker is Greg Watson, Executive Director of Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI) in Roxbury, MA, the only resident-driven community-based nonprofit in the country ever to be granted eminent domain authority over its abandoned parcels of land.  DSNI is a powerful example of what residents can accomplish when they share a vision for their neighborhood and work together to achieve it.   Plenary speaker is John McKnight, who through his teachings and book Building Communities from the Inside Out, has changed the way many organizations and communities around the world are tackling issues they face.  His message is simple and powerful:  rather than dwell on problems and shortcomings, focus on strengths and assets when considering action.

NUSA '99 Conference will feature over 80 workshops on topics ranging from neighborhood organizing and producing great newsletters to crime prevention and pedestrian safety.  The conference will also include sixteen Neighborhood Pride Tours that feature Madison neighborhoods, nationally recognized for their beauty and cohesion.

Workshops filled up fast at last year's conference, so register early!

To request conference registration materials, e-mail your name, address, city/state/zip and phone number to [log in to unmask]   .   After March 1 you can download registration information from the NUSA '99 Conference website at www.ci.madison.wi.us/planning/neighbor/conf99.htm  .