OUR TOWN

Grant: Our Town
Agency: National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)
Deadline: The deadline was January 14, 2013.

Description: Communities across the nation are using smart design and leveraging the arts to create livable, sustainable neighborhoods with enhanced quality of life, increased creative activity, distinct identities, a sense of place and vibrant local economies. The NEA defines these efforts as Creative Placemaking.

Through the new Our Town grant program, NEA will provide grants for creative placemaking projects that contribute toward the livability of communities and help transform them into lively, beautiful and sustainable places with the arts at their core. Our Town will invest in creative and innovative projects in which communities, together with their arts and design organizations and artists, are looking to increase their livability and specifically are seeking to:

• Improve their quality of life.
• Encourage creative activity.
• Foster stronger community identity and a sense of place.
• Revitalize local economies.

A key to the success of creative placemaking involves the arts in partnership with a committed governmental leadership and the philanthropic sector. All Our Town applications must reflect a partnership that will provide leadership for the project. These partnerships must involve at least two organizations: one a nonprofit design or cultural organization and one a government entity. Additional partners are encouraged and may include an appropriate variety of entities such as foundations, arts organizations and artists, nonprofit organizations, design professionals and design centers, educational institutions, developers, business leaders and community organizations, as well as public and governmental entities.

Each Our Town project must have:

• A systemic approach to civic development with a persuasive vision for enhanced community livability.
• Clearly defined civic development goals and objectives that recognize and enhance the role the arts play at the center of community life.
• An action plan aligned with the project vision and civic development goals.
• A funding plan that is appropriate, is feasible, indicates strong community support and includes a well-conceived sustainability strategy.
• An artistic excellence of the design and/or arts organization, designers or artists involved with the project.

Each project should represent the distinct character and quality of its community. NEA plans to support a variety of diverse projects across the country in urban and rural communities of all sizes. Projects may include planning, design and arts engagement activities such as:

• The development of plans for cultural and/or creative sector growth.
• The engagement of artists and/or arts organizations in place-based planning such as community engagement activities.
• The use of design to enhance and/or revitalize public spaces.
• New arts activities to foster interaction among community members, arts organizations and artists, including festivals, outdoor exhibitions, innovative programming, performances in public spaces and activities that encourage the activation of existing cultural and community assets and facilities.
• The commissioning and/or installation of new art to improve public spaces.

All phases of a project – planning, development, design and implementation – are eligible for support. Applicants generally should limit their projects to a single phase.

Fit for public broadcasting: Public media stations are well-suited to apply for this new community-based arts program that focuses on creative placemaking. Because NEA requires partnership applicants, stations can join with local government entities and other arts organizations in their communities to create projects that will promote the arts, enhance the neighborhood and increase the overall livability of the area.

In 2012, the JPR Foundation, in partnership with the City of Medford, OR, received $50,000 for adaptive reuse of a currently vacant building in the city's downtown. The renovation will include space for Jefferson Public Radio. Additionally, Montana Public Radio was listed as a partner on a $50,000 award made to the Missoula Writing Collaborative for a community creative writing project, which will include public broadcasts of participating youth's writing. Read more about this and other 2012 grantees.

Eligibility: Partnerships involving a minimum of two organizations (one a nonprofit design or cultural organization and one a governmental entity) are required of all applications. Additional partners are welcomed. One of the partners must be a cultural organization, act as the official applicant, and have a three-year history of programming and have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all NEA award(s) previously received.

All applicants must have a DUNS number and be registered with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and maintain an active CCR registration until the application process is complete and, should a grant be made, throughout the life of the award.

Anticipated funding: NEA anticipates awarding a limited number of grants, subject to the availability of funding. Organizations must request a grant amount at one of the following levels: $25,000, $50,000, $75,000, $100,000, $150,000 or $200,000. All grants require a nonfederal match of at least one to one. NEA’s support of a project may start on September 1, 2013, or any time thereafter. A grant period of up to two years is allowed.

How to apply: Applicants are required to submit applications electronically through Grants.gov no later than January 14, 2013. Online submission requires registration, a process that usually takes three to five business days but can take as long as four weeks. Be sure to visit Grants.gov and begin registering well in advance of the deadline. NEA strongly encourages applicants to submit their materials at least 10 days in advance to give time to resolve any problems that may occur.

Resources:
Program Guidelines
Our Town Guidelines presentation from NEA
NEA Strategic Plan, 2012-2016
Creative Placemaking
Livability Principles
Our Town 2012 Grantees