Kresge Foundation Seeks Detroit Nonprofits to Fund $2M in Neighborhood Projects

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As part of the third round of Kresge Innovative Projects: Detroit, a three-year, $5 million pilot initiative, the Kresge Foundation is planning to provide $2 million in grants to 15 to 20 community-based nonprofit groups across the city that will work on neighborhood transformation projects.

The first two rounds of the initiative distributed $3 million in grants in response to nearly 200 applications. This third round slates $2 million entirely for implementation grants, with at least one expected to land in each of Detroit’s seven city council districts.

“We continue to learn from the grantees we’ve funded over the first two rounds about what it takes to make a tangible difference in city neighborhoods as well as how we might continue to support their ability to catalyze further efforts in building stronger neighborhoods,” says George C. Jacobsen, senior program officer of the Kresge Foundation’s Detroit Program.

Applications for grants will be judged on a competitive basis on factors including alignment with the Detroit Future City Framework Plan, which is a long-range guide to land use and development created after a multiyear research and community engagement process funded by Kresge.

For a nonprofit to be selected, a project must demonstrate a transformative impact on its Detroit neighborhood, broad engagement of the neighborhood that advances neighborhood priorities, and provide benefits to a broad set of stakeholders and community residents.

Grant-supported projects are to be completed within 18 months of the award, which can be supplemented with funds from other sources. Applications for projects taking place within the city and led by Detroit-based organizations will be accepted until Nov. 21 through Kresge’s online FLUXX system. Recipients will be announced in March.

The Kresge Detroit Program will host two open sessions for information on the initiative. The sessions will be held from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Jam Handy, located at 2900 E. Grand Blvd, on Oct. 25, and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at TechTown, located at 440 Burroughs St., on Nov. 7.

Launched in 2014, Kresge Innovative Projects: Detroit projects so far have included the installation of exercise pocket parks in central Detroit, park development and sculpture installation in North Corktown-Briggs, the renovation of a vacant building to allow the Downtown Boxing Gym Youth Program to mentor more young people, the creation of an environmentally responsible parking lot that doubles as a community gathering space in Grandmont Rosedale, and a neighborhood clean-up and stabilization effort in the Osborn neighborhood.