More than 40 people recently attended a workshop hosted by Miami University Downtown Hamilton as part of the city’s efforts to revitalize its many diverse neighborhoods in the hopes of fostering more civic involvement.

Hamilton’s Sense of Place subcommittee has been working diligently for more than a year to promote and organize conversations among residents. The most recent event taught residents skills to facilitate conversations as well as how to listen to each other to build trust and community in their neighborhoods.

Leslie Haid, who lives at Berkeley Square on the West Side, said she was interested because she wanted to help Hamilton develop its neighborhoods.

Haid said that as society changed after World War II, so did the neighborhoods. She recalled that before the war, neighbors would talk to each other from their front porches as their children played in the front yards. After the war, people started building patios in their back yards and stopped interacting with their neighbors, she said.

Claudette Thomas, who has lived on Hampshire Drive for more than 13 years, said she sees the city as “very divided.”

“I came because it was too easy to stay isolated,” said Thomas, whose pastor is trying to get her church to read the “The Art of Neighboring.”

Thomas said she lives in an apartment building, but only knows one occupant.

“Young couples come and go, and some would help you bring in your groceries from the car,” she said. “But I haven’t had any luck in developing friendships.”

During the conversations, it became apparent that there were a number of common threads and concerns.

“It felt like we’ve known each other for years,”Vice Mayor Carla Fiehrer said.

That familiarity may be the key to encourage residents in each neighborhood to reach out to each other if the neighborhood is to be strengthened and in turn, revitalize the city overall.

“I haven’t talked with everyone, but from the feedback I received, I thought it went well,” said Councilwoman Kathleen Klink. “This was an opportunity to take a breath, listen to the people and reflect on where we’ve been. We have to assess where we’ve been in order to move forward on the next steps.”

Klink said she hopes to resume a regular schedule of Sense of Place subcommittee meetings soon. A follow-up meeting on the recent conversations is slated for later this month.

The committee’s work is starting to take root in at least four neighborhoods — Lindenwald, the 4th Ward, East Hamilton and the North End — and city officials are hoping to expand the group’s vision to other parts of Hamilton.

In Lindenwald and East Hamilton, residents have been working with police to form neighborhood watch groups. Volunteers are walking the streets not only to help keep them safe, but also to introduce themselves to their neighbors and encourage others to get involved. In the 4th Ward, residents came together to throw a neighborhood party at the Boys & Girls Club on East Avenue, and they organized a home decorating contest during the Christmas holiday season.