The Griffin branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) held a public meeting Saturday at Eighth Street Baptist Church to educate attendees on ways to revitalize the Fairmont community, among other topics.

The guest speaker of the event was Griffin Housing Authority (GHA) Director Robert Dull.

During his presentation, Dull talked about the need of helping people transform to a better life and giving everyone an opportunity to have access to educational programming.

The Griffin Housing Authority will spend $300,000 out of its operating budget this year for two years of programming in the Fairmont area - an area that stretches from Jackson Road to Hill Street, with borders at the railroads in the south and Atkinson Elementary in the north, according to Dull.

“The Housing Authority has stepped up this year,” said Dull, adding that the local authority is one of the few housing authorities in the nation that’s financially secure and stable.

In addition, the GHA is advocating the pursuit of a capital fund community center grant worth potentially $3 million as well as a Promise Neighborhoods Initiative by the U.S. Department of Education, which could bring in as much as $500,000.

Many of the housing authority’s initiatives geared toward the Fairmont area come with the support and collaboration of Southern Crescent Technical College, the University of Georgia, the Griffin-Spalding County School System and the Spalding County Parks and Recreation Department.

However, Dull said, the most crucial aspect in the revitalization efforts is participation of the community.

“We are trying to get the community engaged to start a transformation. Your feedback is critical,” he said. “We can start today in helping (the Fairmont) community and preserve that legacy.”