Square Mile Community Development

In 2016, a group of pastors, neighborhood leaders, and nonprofit innovators came together around a simple but pressing question: What will it actually take to transform the most under-resourced neighborhoods in Amarillo for the long haul?

They recognized something important. While Amarillo had many remarkable organizations stepping into crisis and emergency

needs, very few were focused on long-term systems change— creating the conditions where families and communities could thrive on their own terms.

Square Mile Community Development was created to fill that gap.

Today, Square Mile builds opportunity—block by block, family by family—by weaving together local organizations, entrepreneurs, small business owners, churches, civic partners, and neighbors to revitalize communities using a long-term, empowerment-driven approach.

Our model prioritizes five pillars that define a thriving neighborhood:

economic development, food access, housing stability, education, and spiritual care.

What began as a focus on the San Jacinto neighborhood has now expanded across the city as well as  multiple rural communities across the Texas Panhandle. Our reach now extends into regional food systems work, small business development throughout the Panhandle, refugee services, and community development consulting nationally and internationally. From Amarillo to East Africa to rural Mexico, we’ve helped thousands of people create stronger, healthier, more resilient communities.

We know transformation doesn’t happen in a year. It happens across generations. And it happens only when we stand with families, churches, small businesses, and community leaders who are doing the hard work of change every day. We’re here to walk with them—not just in the crisis, but in the opportunity.

We believe hope grows from the inside out.

Do good. Better.

Our Programs:

PATH – Small Business & Economic Develop

mentOur economic development initiative, PATH, provides Personalized, Accessible, Targeted, and Holistic support for entrepreneurs in low-to-moderate-income communities. PATH gives each client a custom plan designed for their skills, culture, language, and go

als.Entrepreneurship is one of the most powerful drivers of social and economic mobility, but too many would-be business owners lack access to capital, networks, or formal training. PATH closes that

gap.PATH serves entrepreneurs who are launching or growing small businesses in our target communities—many of whom are women, minorities, or refugees. The program is completely free to clients and integrates coaching, technical assistance, market strategy, financial planning, and business formalizat

ion.Today, PATH supports businesses locally, regionally, and globally—including ventures in rural Uganda that are now sustaining education programs for child

ren.More: pathtobusiness

.orgSquare Mile Farms – Urban Agriculture & Foo

d AccessSquare Mile Farms began on a vacant lot on 6th Street in San Jacinto and has now grown into a regional model for urban agriculture and food systems inn

ovation. The farm produces thousands of pounds of all-natural vegetables annually for San Jacinto residents, markets, restaurants, food access partners, and families

in need.Using 50 and 100 foot caterpillar tunnels and intensive small-plot methods, we grow salad mixes, arugula, carrots, t

omatoes,radishes, chard, peppers, herbs, and other high-value crops. This once-abandoned land is now producing healthy 

food andinspiring neighborhoods to reclaim their own transfo

rmation.Our second site, in partnership with St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, is unique hybrid of a teaching farm and community garden. It has served as a food access hub, and regional training space with a wonderful kitchen and inclusive design for al

l ages. We’ve supported and launched new farms in Amarillo, across the Panhandle, and abroad—including projects in East Africa supporting women and girls needing economic opportu

nities. Since 2019, we have distributed almost one million pounds of locally grown produce, beef, and dairy to schools, ch

urches, agencies, and fa

milies. Food Insecurity & Regional Food System

DevelopmentFood insecurity in the Panhandle is persistent, complex, and ofte

n invisible.Square Mile is leading a long-term strategy to strengthen the region’s entire food ecosystem—from growers to grocers to food pantries. We work with small and urban farmers, food businesses, local agencies, and policy partners at every level to push for more equitable access to nutritious, affo

rdable food.With support from the Amarillo Area Foundation, we completed  a first-of-its-kind Food Asset & Insecurity Map covering all 26 counties of the Panhandle. This data-driven tool is identifying the gaps in access to food, grocery stores, producers, and food services. You can’t fix what you can’t see—and this project is defining the roadmap for long-term solutions. From Amarillo, to Austin, to Washington DC, we are working to create a better food system through grassroots ef…