College Park receives African American Redress Network report laying out repair proposals for Lakeland

The City of College Park’s council heard a presentation of a final report on restorative justice for the Lakeland neighborhood on a recent council meeting night. The African American Redress Network (AARN) and the city’s interim staff liaison presented historical research, community outreach findings and a suite of policy proposals intended to address harms caused by the Lakeland urban renewal process.

The report documents that urban renewal and related public projects removed homes and disrupted Lakeland’s social and economic fabric and recommends a set of policy responses. Lead presenter Linda Mann said the report is intended to serve as a “guiding document for government officials to act upon the findings presented, explore remaining research areas, and design equitable policies that uplift the Lakeland community.”

AARN’s research team outlined four pillars for repair: housing, connectivity, nature and learning, and matched each pillar to policy proposals that the group says are actionable. Among the proposals: (1) a city‑led investigation of acquisition records and “just compensation” for differences between acquisition prices and fair market values; (2) a “Return to Lakeland” program to track and incentivize descendants and displaced residents…