Mayor Brandon Scott and Baltimore’s housing department on Friday awarded $1.9 million in operating fund grants to 22 community organizations to improve neighborhoods at the grassroots level.
The city granted the funds as part of the third round of Community Catalyst Grants Program (CCG) awards. The grant program launched in 2018, with the goal of bringing new resources into neighborhoods within the City of Baltimore.
According to the press release, “[t]he operating grants awarded tonight strengthen and build capacity for community organizations working in partnership with DHCD to drive resident-led community development and neighborhood transformation.”
“The Community Catalyst Grants aim to spark innovation and empower local changemakers that demonstrate a strong commitment to transforming our city for the better,” Scott said in a statement. “The awards the grantees received tonight will help fuel the collaboration and resources our neighborhoods across the city need to deliver positive change in the lives of Baltimoreans. Ensuring our city is able to achieve its highest potential is going to take every single one of us, and these grantees are paving the way.”
Since its inception, the CCG program has provided $10.6 million of capital grants and $5.9 million of operating funds, totaling more than $16.5 million. This funding goes directly to the on-the-ground community organizations whose mission is neighborhood revitalization throughout Baltimore.
The following organizations were awarded grants ranging from $50,000 to $125,000:
Action Baybrook, Inc.; Baltimore Creatives Acceleration Network; Baltimore Furniture Bank, A Project of Fusion Partnerships, Inc.; Baltimore Urban Leadership Foundation; BOCA Corp. DBA Baltimore Oliver Community Association; City of Refuge Baltimore; Coppin Heights Community Development Corporation; Druid Heights Community Development Corporation; Edmondson Community Organization; Habitat for Humanity of the Chesapeake; HTP Homes, Inc.; Mission First Housing Development Corporation; Network for Developing Conscious Communities; Open Works, Inc.; People’s Homesteading Group; Phase 3 Training Corporation; PIVOT Inc.; Requity Foundation; Southwest Partnership; The National Great Blacks In Wax Museum, Inc.; The Neighborhood Design Center; and Women’s Housing Coalition.
Baltimore’s housing commissioner Alice Kennedy touted the critical need for such funding and collaboration between neighborhood groups and the City government.
“Community partnership is the cornerstone to DHCD’s framework for development,” Kennedy said in a statement. “These grants ensure that our essential partners in this work are able to keep serving their communities in revitalization efforts.”
The grant program “reaffirms the City of Baltimore’s commitment to fostering a dynamic, inclusive, and sustainable community,” the press release read. “By supporting local visionaries and change agents, the CCG program aims to create a lasting impact that improves the well-being and prosperity of our city and its residents.”
I am a Veteran and I need help to stop an eviction. How do I apply for the Maryland Eviction Pervention Program
Hi Elroy. I’m so sorry to hear you are facing a possible eviction. According to 211 Maryland, “The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development is overseeing the Eviction Prevention Partnership. You can apply through your local county for rental support due to COVID-19.” 211 Maryland’s Eviction Prevention page also includes information about tenant rights, housing resources, etc. You can find a list of human services departments for your local county or jurisdiction here. I hope any of that information helps and that you are able to get the assistance you need.