Mount Zion Community Development, Inc. (MZCD) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community-based redevelopment corporation that was born of the vision of Dr. John H. Grant, Pastor of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church.
That vision was and remains “to build a thriving community that reduces barriers, systemic and institutional racism and ensures access to employment, quality healthcare, education, and housing for People of Color”—and, particularly, to build on the foundation of leading the church in preaching, teaching, and witnessing to the gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ.
For several years prior to MZCD’s formation, the church took an active role in the development of the surrounding neighborhood, a primarily African American community known as “the Block.” The Block had been the primary cultural and commercial center for African Americans in western North Carolina since early in the 20th century, but shortly after WWII, the area began to decline, and, after 1970s “Urban Renewal,” it was declared blighted by the City of Asheville in the 1990s.
Blighted areas can become like prisons for those who are powerless to change their way of life. People living in deteriorated or overcrowded conditions can become the victims of crime and disease which have serious social consequences. The church as an institution, and its proud, active members were well aware that when a blighted area is restored and improved, the community benefits through the creation of new or restored homes, prospering businesses, more attractive public areas and parks, and renewal of individual and civic pride.
Origins as a Force for Redevelopment
Redevelopment was a key goal in the 1990s: the up-building and transforming our community. Rev. Grant was the founding president, chairman, and CEO of the Eagle-Market Streets Development Corporation, a 501(c) (3)…
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