43cityofcharlotte.pdf

Keva

L.

Walton

Charlotte's

Neighborhood

MatchingGrants

Fund

isanexcellent

example

of

how

citygovernment isreengineeringitselftobetterserveallcitizens.

The

Fund

is a planning tool that reaches into low- and moderate-incomeneighborhoods, spurringcitizen

in-volvement andleveragingprivateinvestments.

Conse-quently, theCharlotteneighborhood-based

organiza-tionstargeted by the

Fund grow

strongerand takea

more

active roleinimprovingthe qualityoflifeintheir

neighborhoods.

History

and

Background

InJanuary 1992,theCharlotteCityCouncil

appro-priated$650,000toestablishtheNeighborhood

Match-ingGrantsFund.Patternedaftera similarinitiativein

Seattle,Washington,the

Fund

isan innovative concept

thatprovidesmatchinggrantfundstoqualified

neigh-borhood-basedorganizations.Thesegrantspermitthe

organizations to undertake projects that

make

their

neighborhoods betterplaces to live, work, play, and

shop.

The

goalsoftheNeighborhood MatchingGrants

Fund

areto:

• _{Buildthecapacityofandparticipationin}

neighbor-hood-basedresidentialandbusinessassociations,

•

Allow

neighborhoods to determine priorities for

improvements intheir

own

areas,

KevaWaltonisanativeofRaleigh,N.C.

He

hasa Bachelor ofScience degreein Urban andRegionalPlanningfrom

EastCarolinaUniversityanda Master ofPublic

Adminis-tration degreefrom the University of North Carolina.

Charlotte.

He

workedfortheCityofCharlotteinvarious

capacitiesfor overeight years. SinceJune 1993. he has

been the City's NeighborhoodMatching Grants

Coordi-nator.

• _Leveragecitizen involvement and resourcesto re-vitalizeand reinvestin low-andmoderate-income

neighborhoods,and

• Stimulatethedevelopment ofpartnershipsbetween

theCityofCharlotte,residentandbusiness

associa-tions,andother

community

organizations, resulting

inprojectsandproductsthatbenefittargeted neigh-borhoods.

The Neighborhood

MatchingGrants

Fund

isone of

the toolsdevelopedbytheCityofCharlotteina

city-wideeffort toimprovethequality oflifeinthe city as

awiiole.However,the

Fund

focusesspecificallyonan

area

know

as theCityWithinaCity

(CWAC).

This60

square-mile area in the heart of Charlotte has a

populationof over 145,000. If

CWAC

wereaNorth

Carolinacity, it

would

bethestate'sfifthlargest.

The

73 neighborhoods comprisingtheCityWithin aCity

havethefollowingcharacteristics:

• 1 of every 6families livesin poverty.

• 1ofeveryThouseholdsisheadedbyasinglefemale.

• _{20 of}the73neighborhoodsexperience

unemploy-ment

rates greater that

10%

(while the rate for

Mecklenburg

County

fluctuatesbetween

3%

-_4%). • 21 oftheneighborhoodsexperience

unemployment

rates between

6%

-

9%.

•

44%

ofthe

homes

are

owner

occupiedand 56

%

are rented (for Charlotte, the

home

ownership rate is

62%

and

38%

isrental).

•

31%

_{ofadults age 25 or olderdo not havea high}

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PLANNING

44

schooldiploma(vs. 1

2%

forCharlotteasawhole).

•

A

majorityoftheneighborhoods havehighcrime

rates (a 1992 report indicated that

75%

of drug

arrests

were

made

in

CWAC).

These

facts demonstrate the urgency of these

neighborhoods' problems and the pressing need to

address them.

By

providing an opportunity for

resi-dents in low- to moderate-income neighborhoodsto

organize andtakeproactive steps towards

making

a

differenceintheirsurroundings,theCityrealizesboth

short-andlong-termreturnsonitsinvestments.

Imme-diateandrecognizabledifferencesoccurinthe

short-term. Long-term, the program develops

empowered

citizens,

who

are ableto

communicate

effectivelywith

their city

government

and

who

takeownershipofand

prideintheirneighborhoods.It isthislong-termreturn

ontheCity'sinvestmentthatwillpositivelyimpactthe

statisticsfortheCityWithin

A

City.BecauseCharlotte's

CityCouncil recognizesthis fact,the

Neighborhood

MatchingGrants

Fund

isidentifiedasa

Crime

Preven-tionStrategyinthe City's recentlyadopted

Community

Safety Plan. This five-year plan outlines a strategic

approach to address the City's crime problems.

As

neighborhoodorganizationsinqualifying areas recog-nize their potential tohaveameaningfulimpactonthe destinyoftheirneighborhoods, planninggoalsfor

many

ofthese areasare realizedandthe City's qualityoflife

improves.

How

the

Neighborhood

Matching

Grant

Fund

Works

Any

neighborhood

organization within the

City ofCharlottethat

is located in a 1990

censustract

where

the

median

household

in-come

is

below

the

City's

median

of $36,654

may

applyfor

a

matching

grant.

Neighborhood-based

associations

(residen-tial or business) are

eligiblefortheprogram

if a majority of the association's

members

residinginoroperating

businesses

intheneigh-borhoodareeligible.

The

association'spurpose

must

focuson improvingthe quality cflifewithinthe neigh-borhood.

Eligibleprojects

must mee;

thefollowingcriteria: • Providea public,neighborhoodbenefit,

• Involveneighborhoodpeopleinthe identification,

planning,andexecutionoftheproposedactivity, •

_Be

completedwithina 12

month

time frame,and •

_Conform

toapplicablehealth safetyandlegal

regu-lations.

Projectscannot duplicate anexistingpublic or

pri-vateprogramorsupportanongoingserviceor operat-ingbudget.Therearefourproject categories: Neigh-borhood Improvement,Neighborhood Organizing and

OrganizationalDevelopment,

Crime

andPublic Safety,

and

Neighborhood

Education, Recreation, and

Cul-turallnitiatives.

TheNeighborhood Improvement

category includes

projects that improve the aesthetic appearance ofa

neighborhood.

Funded

projects include landscaping

improvements andinstallationoftrashreceptaclesand

sculpture in public areas.

Neighborhood

Organizing andOrganizational

Development

projectshelpstartor strengthen aneighborhoodorganization. Leadership

training fororganizationofficersandestablishing by-laws fortheneighborhoodorganizationareexamples ofprojectsinthiscategory.

Newly

forming

organiza-Residents oftheHistoric NorthCharlotteNeighborhoodAssociationworkto createpubhc artin

tionsare eligible for aone-time matchinggrantof$2

fromtheCityofCharlotteforevery$1 the

neighbor-hood

organizationscontribute.

The Crime

and Public Safety projects focus on improvingpublicsafetyandreducingcrimewithina

neighborhood. Signageinformingneighborhood

resi-dents

where

to call

when

witnessingdrugactivityand improvingthevisibilityof house numberingin

acondo-minium

neighborhoodare

two

examples of projects

ftindedinthiscategory. Charlotte-Mecklenburg

Com-munityPolice officers are involved inassisting

resi-dents in planning and implementing

some

of these

efforts.

The community

policing effort in general is

very involved with

many

oftheorganizationsseeking

matchinggrantfunds.

The Neighborhood

Education, Recreation, and Cultural Initiatives is a broad

cat-egory. After-schooltutoringprograms,computer

lit-eracyprogramsforyouthandadults,andsenior citizen

exerciseprogramsareexamplesofprojectsthat have

been funded.

Projects are not required to fall into one specific category.Forexample,one neighborhoodused

Match-ing Grantfundsto renovate an abandonedvolunteer

firedepartmentforuseas aneighborhood

community

center. Thissingle projectaddressed aspectsof each

category. Improvingthe abandoned structure

was

a

"Neighborhood

Improvement

projectthatdealtwith

"Crime

and Public Safety" concerns by utilizing an

abandonedstructure thathadthe potentialofattracting vagrants.

The

renovation project addressed "Neigh-borhoodOrganizational

Development

byprovidinga

permanent meetingfacilityfortheneighborhood

orga-nization,aswellas afacilityinwhich"Neighborhood

Educational, Recreational,andCultural"activitiescould take place.

Neighborhood

organizationsare

encour-aged tothink of

new

and innovative ideasthat meet

Fund

objectives and

make

a difference within their

neighborhoods.

Matching

The

Grant

Monies

The

key

component

ofthis initiativeisthe

require-mentthatneighborhoodorganizations provideamatch

equal to or greater than the funds requested.

The

matchingcriteria

may

besatisfiedwith volunteerlabor

(valued at $10.00 per hour), cash, donations, orany combination ofthese.However,25 percent ofthetotal

match must

come

fromtheneighborhoodorganization'

own

resources.

Effortsby neighborhoodstoformpartnershipswith outside organizations are encouraged. Partnerships provideadditionalresourcestoassistneighborlioodsin achievingplannedprojects.

To

helpfoster these rela-tionships.theCityhostsan annualNeighborhood

Match-ingGrants PartnerFair.This event provides an

oppor-tunity for neighborhoods, businesses, and

organiza-tions tonetwork and form partnerships.

Reviewing Grant Applications

and

Assisting

Applicants

Two

separateteams review and

make

decisionson

submittedgrant applications.

The

Inter-Departmental

teamiscomprised ofseveralCitystaff

members

from

variousdepartments.

They

areresponsiblefor

review-ingallgrant

subm

issionsanddecisionsonsmallgrants

($3,000 and less).

The

City-Wide

Review team

is a

citizensboard appointedbytheCharlotteCity Council.

They

areresponsibleforreviewingand

making

deci-sionsonalllargegrants(between$3,000and$25,000).

Bothteamsbringskillsandexpertise to thereviewof

applicationsandprovidetechnical assistancetogrant

applicants.

The

teams also establish policy for the

Fund.

Each team

member

isassignedto

work

withagrant

applicant prior to the decision meeting.

The

team

member

contacts the applicant,

makes

anynecessary

site visits, and assiststhe applicant in resolving any

outstanding issues relative to their neighborhood

organization'sgrant request.Atthedecisionmeeting,

theteammemberprovidesany

additionalinformation orclarificationonhisorherassigned grantrequest.

Team members

also participateinpre-applications

workshops.

The

workshopsprovide an opportunityfor organizationsinterestedinapplying foraneighborhood matchinggranttodiscussprojectideas,askquestions,

andreceive assistanceincompletingthegrant

applica-tion.

The

teamsplayaveryactiveand importantrole

in the successofthe Fund.

Awarding

the Grants

Matchinggrant requests arefunded at

two

levels.

Small grantsof$3,000orlessare

awarded

fourtimes duringtheyear,whilelargegrants,rangingfrom$3,000

to $25,000are awardedtwiceeach year.Requestsat

eitherlevelareratedaccordingtothefollowing

crite-ria, forapossibletotal of100points.

Qualityof

Match

(10possible points)

• _{Value of}

_{Match (0-5}

points): Points are

awarded

basedonaformulathatcalculates apointvaluefor the

amount

ofmatchingresourcesthata

neighbor-hoodorganizationwillcontributetoimplementthe

plannedproject.

46

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PLANNING

TheNeighborhoodMatching GrantPartner Fair providesneighborhoodorganizationsandinterested

communitypartnersanopportunitytonetworktoformpartnerships.

awarded

basedon

how

welltheneighborhood

orga-nizations

document

theirmatchingcontribution. Participation (35 possible points)

• Broad

Neighborhood

Participation (0-_{25 points):}

Pointsare

awarded

basedon

how

wellthe

neighbor-hood

organization involvesneighborhoodresidents

in allphasesoftheplannedproject.

• _{AdditionalPartners/SocialDiversity(0- 10}points):

Pointsareawardedbasedon

how

wel1the

neighbor-hood

organizationhasreached outtoinvolve

"part-ners"

beyond

theneighborhoodorganizationto

as-sistinimplementingaplannedproject.

Project

Need

(15 possiblepoints)

•

_Low-Income

Benefit (5 points): Five points are

awarded

proposedactivitiesforlow-income

neigh-borhoodsorfor projectswhich targetlow-income

households.

•

_Documented

_Need

(0-10

points): Points are

awarded

based on whether a project addresses a

neighborhood needorproblemrecognizedinaCity

report,plan,orother publiclydefinedstudy;

ProjectDesign(40 possiblepoints)

• _Costeffective,wel1planned,readyfor

implementa-tion (0 - 25 points):

Points are

awarded

based on

how

well the

neighborhood

organiza-tiondemonstratesthata

plannedprojectisready

to proceed ifa grantis

awarded. Clearly

articu-lated goals,measurable

objectives,andadefined

time-framefor

comple-tion are key factors in

awardingpoints forthis

criterion.

• Projectbudgetis re-liable

(0-10

points):

Points are

awarded

based on

how

well a

neighborhood

organiza-tion prepares a budget

forthe plannedproject.

A

detailedlineitembudgetwith projectedexpenses and written costestimates forthe itemsneededto

complete the project are key factors in awarding

points inthiscriterion.

• Innovation(0-5points): Pointsare

awarded

based on

how

the planned project proposes a

new

or

creativeapproach in addressing an issue.

Success:

One

Neighborhood

Example

To

date, 96 projects totaling over $450,000 have

receivedapprovalfor grantfunds.

A

varietyof neigh-borhood-initiated projects are in progress, ranging

fromlandscaping

enhancement

andcomputerliteracy

programs tothe renovationofexisting structures for

neighborhooduse.

The

Greenville

Homeowners

Associationisa shin-ing

example

ofwhatcanhappen

when

neighborhood

residents arecommittedto

making

thingshappen. This neighborhoodorganization successfullycompletedthree

neighborhoodmatchinggrantsandisintheprocessof completing a fourth project. After canvassing the

neighborhood, the Association foundthat computer

literacy

was

a highpriority forGreenville residents.

The

organizationappliedforitsfirstmatchinggrantand

was

awarded $7,054toimplement

acomputer

literacy

program intheircommunity.

Foritsmatch,theGreenville

Homeowners

One

donated several desks for use in the program,

while a computer trainer from a second business donatedher professionalskillsto trainseveral Greenville residents

who

inturn

would

trainotherresidents.

The

value ofthe desks and the computer trainer's time countedtowardthegrantmatch.

To

fulfil1theirportion

ofthematch, thefirstgroup ofresidentsvolunteered

for trainingand then conductedtrainingsessions for

otherresidents.

The

computerlabisopen on

weekday

eveningsattheGreenville

community

center. Neigh-borhoodresidents receivefirstpriority,but asopenings

become

available,people outsidetheGreenville

com-munity

may

takeadvantageofthe training.

In a second grant, the Greenville

Homeowners

Association appliedforand were

awarded

agrantto

purchase uniforms and musical equipment for the

Greenville

Community Combined

Youth Marching

Corps.

With

the itemspurchased,themarchingcorps

ofyoung

peoplefromtheGreenville

community

trav-eled to a national drill team competition in Myrtle

Beach,SouthCarolina.

The

GreenvilleCorps

was

the

only neighborhood-based entry in the competition.

Groups

from aroundthecountryand

Canada

partici-pated.

The

GreenvilleCorpstook top honors,winning

firstplace for "BestAll

Around

Performance."

As

a

resultofthisvictory, the Corpstravels the region to

performforvariousfunctions.

The

success inMyrtle

Beach

resultedinanadditional surprise for theCorps.

A

localmusic

company

acknowledgedthedi1igenceof thisgroupbydonating

new

musicalequipmentvalued

inexcessof $21,000totheCorps.

Membership

in the Greenville

Community

Com-bined

Youth Marching

Corps is earned.

The

youth

mustkeeptheirgradesup,participateintheafterschool

tutoring/computerliteracytrainingclasses,and

partici-patein

community

service projects.

To

date,there are

over 50

young

people involved.

The

Greenville

Homeowners

Associationisevidencethatresidentsin

low-tomoderate-income neighborhoodscanandwill

takeanactive rolein

making

positivechangesforthe

bettermentoftheirneighborhood andneighbors.

Next

Steps

Work

with organizationstofurtherstrengthentheir

capacitieswillcontinuethrough 1995.1ncreasing

aware-nessofthe

Fund

among

newly

formed

neighborhood-basedorganizations isalsoa majorfocusarea.

Addi-tionally, showcasing the

many

successes resulting

from the diligent

work

ofthe City's neighborhood

partners is ofgreat importance.

The

Partner Fair of

March

1995paid specialtribute tothe

many

successful

projectsinCharlotte'sneighborhoodswithassistance

fromthe

Neighborhood

MatchingGrants Fund.

Beyond

theprocessofawarding andreceivinggrant

monies,theNeighborhood MatchingGrants

Fund

isa catalyst thatmotivates, leverages resources, and

in-vestsintheCityofCharlotte'sfuture.Equally

impor-tantisinvestingintheleadersoftomorrow andinstilling

asenseof

community

prideandactivism.

The Fund

represents a

commitment

to

making

a significant, positivechange in the lives ofneighbors.

The Fund

helpsensurethateachneighborhoodhasan