Grant Deadline Approaching For Crime Reduction, Community Programs and Projects

The deadline for applications for grant money available from the Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund is just under two weeks away. In October, Attorney General Matt Denn and Delaware Division of Small Business, Development and Tourism Director Cerron Cade announced $1.3 million in funds for community organizations to support crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization, and economic development programs statewide, with special emphasis on programs in and around downtown areas and neighborhoods. Applications must be received by December 20.

The grant funds were allocated to the NBBF by the Department of Justice, with the agreement of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, from settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets.

Among the listed goals of the grants from the state’s Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund (NBBF) are to:

  • address unmet needs of high crime areas statewide
  • improve resources and opportunities for at-risk juveniles and adolescents
  • increase the use of planning that incorporates crime prevention strategies
  • enable projects by neighborhood-level organizations that may not traditionally receive grant funding

Prior rounds of NBBF grants since 2015 have included juvenile activities, including summer and after-school programs; neighborhood improvement, including vacant lot projects; lights and façade improvements; public safety and recidivism activities, including police foot patrols and programs for released inmates, surveillance cameras, and safety courses; and downtown district planning activities in cities and towns throughout Delaware.

The application with the full list of purposes and requirements is available here. Applications are to the Division of Small Business, Development and Tourism, which administers NBBF.

Successful applicants are expected to be determined in the first few months of 2018.


Grants For Crime Reduction, Community Programs and Projects Available from Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund

Applications are being accepted from community organizations for $1.3 million in funds to support crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization, and economic development programs statewide, with special emphasis on programs in and around downtown areas and neighborhoods, Attorney General Matt Denn and Delaware Division of Small Business, Development and Tourism Director Cerron Cade announced Tuesday. Applications are due Dec. 20.

Among the listed goals of the grants from the state’s Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund (NBBF) are to:

  • address unmet needs of high crime areas statewide
  • improve resources and opportunities for at-risk juveniles and adolescents
  • increase the use of planning that incorporates crime prevention strategies
  • enable projects by neighborhood-level organizations that may not traditionally receive grant funding

The current round will cap grant awards at $50,000 and will give priority consideration to applications for less than $10,000 as well as for partnerships between community organizations.
The grant funds were allocated to the NBBF by the Department of Justice, with the agreement of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, from settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets.

“The purpose of these funds is to provide some help to the hardest hit neighborhoods in our state in terms of crime and the economy,” said Attorney General Denn, who proposed directing settlement money to the NBBF. “I know there are neighborhood groups that are working every day to make their communities safer and better, and that have innovative ideas that some funding could make happen.”
“We look forward to getting these funds into our communities statewide through creative and effective programs,” said Cade, director of the Division of Small Business, Development & Tourism, who chairs the NBBF board. “The grants can go a long way in giving great ideas legs they need to come to fruition and make a positive impact.”

Prior rounds of NBBF grants since 2015 have included juvenile activities, including summer and after-school programs; neighborhood improvement, including vacant lot projects; lights and façade improvements; public safety and recidivism activities, including police foot patrols and programs for released inmates, surveillance cameras, and safety courses; and downtown district planning activities in cities and towns throughout Delaware.

The application with the full list of purposes and requirements is available at http://downtowndelaware.org. Applications are to the Division of Small Business, Development and Tourism, which administers NBBF.

A board — including representatives of the Division of Small Business, Development and Tourism, the Department of Justice, the Delaware State Housing Authority, the Office of State Planning, and former Wilmington Mayor James Sills as a public representative — consider the applications. Awards are expected to be made in the first few months of 2018.


Governor Carney Joins Attorney General Denn to Announce Summer and Afterschool Programs

Grants funded by settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets

WILMINGTON, Del.The following is an excerpt from Governor Carney’s remarks on Monday at H. Fletcher Brown Boys and Girls Club for an announcement of more than $900,000 in funding for 16 organizations to provide summer and afterschool programs for teens and youth in economically disadvantaged areas of Delaware:

“Certainly, we know that collaboration and partnership is an important part of making our communities safer, strengthening our communities, and strengthening the economy across our state. And when I think about the problems and challenges that we have here in the state of Delaware, they’re all connected. And at the root of those connections are creating stronger families, stronger communities in which those families live, and better educating and supporting our young people so they can be our workforce of tomorrow. We have to commit ourselves to work together in partnership to deal with the real source of those problems. We aren’t going to be successful as a state– we’re not going to be successful as a city– unless we prepare these children to be successful.”

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Additional information about the grants can be found here.
Photos from the announcement can be found here.
Funds for the grants were allocated to the Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund by the Department of Justice, with the agreement of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, from settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets. The NBBF, which gave priority to smaller dollar requests, awarded grants to:

  • Latin American Community Center – $5000 for a soccer league for 20 at-risk youth age 12-16 in Hilltop area of Wilmington
  • YWCA of Delaware – $17,589 for a Summer Internship Teen Empowerment program to provide exposure for youth with a number of major employers
  • Jewish Family Services of Delaware – $20,592 for Pre-Employment Training Services for at-risk youth in Wilmington
  • FAME Inc. – $25,000 for STEM education for students in grades 3-6 during out-of-school hours in Wilmington
  • Western Family YMCA – $30,470 for after school and community events for teens in Newark
  • New Horizons Community Center – $34,500 for martial arts and work readiness for juveniles and teens in Wilmington
  • Dover YMCA – $42,275 for its Young Men Mentoring Program for 30 boys age 10-15 on healthy lifestyles and employment skills training in Dover
  • Dover Police – $43,903 for basketball, flag football and hockey programs for Dover city youth
  • Central YMCA – $43,025 for a summer activity program for 75 teens in Wilmington
  • Bear YMCA – $45,080 for summer activities for 75 at-risk teens in Route 40 area
  • Walnut Street YMCA – $45,315 for teen engagement for 200 8th and 9th graders in Wilmington
  • Delaware Nature Society – $48,394 for an environmental after-school club for 30 students
  • Be Ready Community Development Corp. – $49,400 to provide stipends to 24 youth to engage in neighborhood beautification and construction projects in West Center City Wilmington
  • Pathways of Delaware – $81,986 for its Youth Health Ambassador Program to prevent youth delinquency
  • Dover Housing Authority – $136,500 to provide exercise equipment at Simon Circle community center staffed by military and police volunteers
  • Boys and Girls Club – $250,000 for summer and after-school activities for approximately 1000 teens in 5 locations: Wilmington (2 sites), Dover, Milford and Seaford


Funds Available For Community Revitalization Programs

Attorney General Matt Denn reminds community organizations that applications are currently being accepted for the grants from the Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund to support crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization, and economic development programs statewide. Applications are due by Dec. 19.

Among the listed goals of the grants are to:
• address unmet needs of high crime areas statewide
• improve resources and opportunities for at-risk juveniles and adolescents
• increase the use of planning that incorporates crime prevention strategies
• enable projects by neighborhood-level organizations that may not traditionally receive grant funding

The application with the full list of purposes and requirements is available here.

The $3.7 million in grant funds were allocated to the NBBF by the Department of Justice, with the agreement of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, from settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets.

“The purpose of these funds is to provide some help to the hardest hit neighborhoods in our state in terms of crime and the economy,” said Attorney General Denn, who proposed directing settlement money to the NBBF. “I know there are neighborhood groups that are working every day to make their communities safer and better, and that have innovative ideas that some funding could make happen.”

Applications can be submitted to the Delaware Economic Development Office, which administers NBBF.


Public Workshops Next Week On Grants for Crime Prevention and Neighborhood Revitalization Strategies

The public is invited to three workshops next week to provide input on priorities for $3.7 million in grants aimed at preventing crime and revitalizing neighborhoods statewide.

The grants will be administered by the Neighborhood Building Blocks Fund, which was created in 2014 to support crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization, and economic development programs statewide, including programs in and around Downtown Development Districts and high crime areas.

The workshops are scheduled for:

  • Tuesday, September 13, 6-8 p.m., Georgetown Public Library, 123 West Pine St.
  • Wednesday, September 14, 6-8 p.m., DNREC Auditorium, 89 Kings Highway, Dover
  • Thursday, September 15, 6-8 p.m. West End Neighborhood House, 710 N. Lincoln St., Wilmington

The workshops will begin with a presentation detailing the purposes and goals of the Fund followed by solicitation of public suggestions about effective crime prevention and neighborhood development strategies. Applications for specific projects or proposals are not being accepted or considered at this time. Applications for grants will open this fall.

The $3.7 million in grant funds were allocated to the NBBF by the Department of Justice, with the agreement of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee, from settlements with national banks for alleged misconduct in the national financial markets.

“The purpose of these funds is to provide some help to the hardest hit neighborhoods in our State in terms of crime and the economy,” said Attorney General Matt Denn, who proposed directing settlement money to the NBBF. “I know there are neighborhood groups that are working every day to make their communities safer and better, and that have innovative ideas that some funding could make happen.”