CD Council Online

Funding Opportunities

Community LIFT has announced the availability of small grassroots grants (up to $500) for projects in Frayser, Binghamton, and Upper South Memphis. See the following for information on suitable projects, qualifications, and geographic boundaries for the eligible areas. The deadline to apply is February 29.

Download Uplift RFP 2.3.2012 Download Uplift RFP Guidelines

Community Foundation of Greater Memphis will be accepting applications for its 2012 Capacity Building Grants. Interested organizations must attend one of two preapplication workshops. More information here.

The Health, Education, and Housing Facility Board of Memphis has announced the first round of its Affordable Multifamily Housing PILOT Program for Calendar Year 2012. Applications will be accepted until March 9. For more information: john.baker@memphishehf.com.

Help Wanted!

Three community development job openings have been announced. Please see the job descriptions for more information about qualifications, duties, and deadlines to apply.

1. Alcy Ball CDC is seeking its first executive director.

Download Alcy Ball E.D. job description

2. RISE Foundation is seeking a program coordinator for its grant-funded National Neighbors Silver program.

Download RISE Foundation Position Announcement

3. Frayser CDC has a position available for a rental program and property manager.

Download Rental Manager- frayser cdc

Frayser Putting Negligent Property Owners on Notice

Frayser CDC, in partnership with the City of Memphis, will announce a lawsuit against the owners of 25 empty, neglected properties in Frayser. This is part of a larger legal action being taken by the City under the Tennessee Neighborhood Preservation Act. Most of the Frayser properties will be in the Grandview North neighborhood—between University and Mountain Terrace, south of Frayser Blvd. However, we will also put the owners of Peachtree South, the abandoned apartments across the street from Frayser High School, on notice.  These empty properties are harmful to this community. This lawsuit will seek to require the owners to restore their properties, or have the Environmental Court appoint a receiver with the authority to do so.  Please join Mayor Wharton, Attorney General Weirich, Frayser CDC and others for a brief press conference at Peachtree South Apartments, 3180 Steele Street, on Wednesday, February 8^th, 11:30 A.M.

KaBOOM! Grants Support New Playgrounds

The mission of KaBOOM! is to create great playspaces throughout the United States through the participation and leadership of communities. KaBOOM!, in collaboration with Dr Pepper Snapple, is offering Let's Play Community Construction Grants of $15,000 to organizations nationwide. The grants are to be used toward the purchase of playground equipment that will be built using the KaBOOM! community-build model. Eligible applicants include U.S.-based municipalities, neighborhood associations, schools, day care centers, and nonprofit organizations without a playground or with existing equipment that is unsafe for children to use. Cooper Young received a grant from this program several years ago to support a new playground at Peabody School. Info here. Deadline is March 12.

Farm to Table Conference Coming Up

The second annual Farm to Table Conference for Mid-South Producers will take place on February 6, 2012 from 8 AM to 5 PM at the Memphis Bioworks Foundation Conference Center. The conference is designed to provide a forum for farmers, consumers, entrepreneurs and other interested groups to discuss ideas for developing the local food system of Memphis and the Mid-South.

The Farm to Table Conference for Mid-South Producers was established with the vision that a thriving local food system will strengthen farmer livelihoods by connecting more farmers to local consumers; will improve access to fresh produce and increase healthy food consumption; and will stimulate economic development and job creation in the region. The 2012 conference will feature sessions on a variety of important topics for the local food system – from marketing produce to grocery stores, schools and restaurants, to vegetable production, community supported agriculture, new farm
start-ups, and food policy. A networking lunch will provide attendees the chance to further develop relationships and collaborative opportunities.

For more information on the 2012 Farm to Table Conference for Mid-South Producers, including registration, please visit Grow Memphis.

State Affordable Housing Trust Fund to Award $6.6 Million

The Tennessee Housing Development Agendy has announced that it will be accepting proposals for the 2012 competitive grants from the state's affordable housing trust fund. Activities are limited to rental and homeownership programs, and a 50 percent match is required. An application workshop for West Tennessee will be held on Thursday, February 2, 1 p.m., at the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce, 197 Auditorium Street. Program descriptions and applications will be available on January 31 at the THDA web site. Applications will be due March 2 and successful applications will be notified by the end of May. More information: (615) 815-2030.

Income and Asset Building Workshop

United Way of the Mid-South and CBANA are presenting a free workshop Using Data to Drive Problem Solving Memphis: A CIM training for Non-Profit and Community Development Stakeholders on Monday, November 7, from 1 to 3 p.m. The agenda will include:

• How to identify the most important datasets to support your anti-povertyprogramming efforts
• Learing about community resources that support asset building using CIM, and
• Implcations for the recent news that Memphis is the poorest metro in America.

Download the flyer below for additional information. Download Income Asset Building Workshop

Urban Quality of Life conference at U of M

The Graduate Program in City and Regional Planning at the University of Memphis is hosting a three-day seminar on Evolution and Quality of Life Studies on November 5-7. A special focus of this mini-conference will be to examine the urban policy implications of this scholarship on the City of Memphis’ current and future neighborhood revitalization efforts. For additional information jbuttrmr@memphis.edu or  901-678-2161. Download QOLprogramrevised Download SeminarLetter

Free Small Business Loan Workshop

alt.Consulting is hosting a free workshop for small businesses on how to get a loan, on Tuesday, November 29, from 6 to 8 p.m. Download How to get a loan flyer Memphis

 

Summit for Neighborhood Leaders Coming Up October 22

CD Council, through its Livable Memphis initiative, will present the fifth annual Summit for Neighborhood Leaders on Saturday, October 22. On the theme of Wired Citizen: Using Technology to Connect Cities and Communities will explore how government and communities are using technology to create more livable cities.

The morning summit, Using Technology to Connect Cities and Communities, will focus of how technology is being used:

• by cities to connect with residents and collect data
• by citizens to connect community members to each other and issues
• to create tools for making cities more livable.

The afternoon GovCamp will preview the City of Memphis available public data, and give participants a chance to prioritize what data sets should be released and brainstorm about what kinds of tools can be created to make that data accessible to the public.

Register here.