Page last updated on February 9, 2023 at 8:26 pm
Each week, Mayor Hamilton, Deputy Mayor Carmichael, and other city employees provide video updates on recent news and initiatives. Access all of the weekly video updates at bloomington.in.gov/videoupdates.
Join Deputy Mayor Mary Catherine Carmichael and Neighborhood Services Program Manager Angela Van Rooy as they discuss the 2023 Neighborhood Improvement Grants.
The City of Bloomington Department of Housing and Neighborhood Development (HAND) invites residents to apply for City funding to improve their neighborhoods. The types of grants available are described below:
Neighborhood Improvement Grant
The Neighborhood Improvement Grant is designed to give residents a direct role in the improvement of their neighborhoods. The funds provide for non-traditional capital projects with community-wide benefits, that are shown to have broad neighborhood support. Projects may include those not typically covered by traditional City programs, including physical improvements and public art. Visit https://bton.in/r8aZO for guidelines and an application.
Small & Simple Grants
The Small & Simple Grant program offers funding up to $500/year through September 1 for community-building opportunities that might not otherwise be available or neighborhood-wide initiatives to remove invasive species and replace them with native plants. Visit https://bton.in/IW2Ww for guidelines and an application.
Neighborhood Cleanup Grant
The Neighborhood Cleanup Grant provides an opportunity for neighbors to work together to build community and instill pride in their neighborhood. Cleanup is a one-day event during which volunteers from the neighborhood receive support from City staff and equipment assistance to dispose of trash, tires, scrap metal, hazardous material, and brush. Visit https://bton.in/3umKG for guidelines and an application.
Questions? Contact Angela at angela.vanrooy@bloomington.in.gov or 812-349-3505.
Transcript
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Hello. I'm Deputy Mayor Mary Catherine Carmichael, and I'm joined by Angela Van Rooy, who is our neighborhood services program manager. So what does that do? What is your job? Tell us about what your job does.
Angela Van Rooy:
I work with neighborhood associations. I have grant programs, which we're going to talk about today. I run the Residents Academy to teach residents about city government. I do a lot of community outreach. So that's largely what it is, is being the face of our department for the community.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Great. And which department is that?
Angela Van Rooy:
Housing and Neighborhood Development.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Okay, great. Perfect. So you mentioned grants. We have three specific grants that are coming to be available to folks right now, each of which they can apply for. But let's just break them out one by one. I understand we have the Neighborhood Improvement Grants, the Small and Simple Grants, and then the Cleanup Grants.
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
So let's just start at the beginning with the Neighborhood Improvement Grants. What can you accomplish if you apply for that kind of grant and receive it?
Angela Van Rooy:
Okay. So this year, actually we have some exciting changes to this program. Traditionally, it has been just for physical improvement, which includes public art. Now, we are expanding it to be more community building types of grants. So that could include events or other programs, leadership training, capacity building for neighborhood associations. So I'm very excited about that. It'll be an opportunity for people to come together more in community, to build their organizations and do the neighborly types of things that we want to encourage. So this is a capital grant. So our minimum budget for this is $1,100 minimum. That's $1,000 grant with a 10% match from the neighborhood. So they are larger grants. We don't have a cap on the maximum, but we do have a total budget of $30,000 this year. It is-
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
So there could be several of these or there could be fewer larger?
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes. It depends on what kind of applications we get. Last year, we were able to fully fund all three that we received with some money left over. The year before that, we had seven, and we had to pair them down in order to be able to fund everyone at least partially. So this can range from putting a neighborhood sign at the entrance to the neighborhood. It can be benches in the community. We had a neighborhood a couple of years ago that had mostly older residents, and they put a number of benches in. We've had lots of improvements in our parks, and neighborhoods that have parks. So whether it's playground equipment, native plantings, ways of communicating in terms of kiosks for information sharing, and that sort of thing, there are lots of opportunities. And as I said, now this year for the first time, we have these more community-based grants where we will actually fund events and programs as well as physical improvements.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Great. So really opening that up.
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes, yes.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
That's really cool. It allows them to be more creative.
Angela Van Rooy:
Absolutely.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Let's move on to the second kind. We have the Small and Simple Grants.
Angela Van Rooy:
Okay. So the Small and Simple Grant is, as the name implies, a very quick and easy application. It does not have a neighborhood match component, and the maximum grant per neighborhood per year is $500. There are two basic categories under that umbrella. One of them is more general for events or workshops or some small project that you want to accomplish. The other one is specifically for the removal of invasive plants from the neighborhood, and that can also include replacement with native plants. So you can use your grant to purchase natives as an incentive for neighbors to remove the invasives. So those are two separate programs with two separate applications.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
That's great. And then, finally, we have the Neighborhood Cleanup Grants.
Angela Van Rooy:
This one is my favorite. This is a lot of fun. It's a Saturday morning. Most of the HAND staff will be there. We do all the logistics, and the neighborhood provides volunteers. The best way to get an application approved is to show us you are committed to the project. Neighbors are going to participate. You have lots of volunteers ready to work. We focus on collecting trash, hazardous materials, tires, and scrap metal. We also have either a wood chipper or some means of collecting brush and limbs. We will have a little picker pile. So good things that come in that are too good for the trash heap can go in a pile, and anybody who wants them can take them for free. And it's a lot of fun. We always have a good time that day.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
And that's on a couple of Saturday mornings?
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes. So we do two per year in the springtime. The available dates are on the website, and that would be April, May, and June. And we have specific dates that we avoid, like Mother's Day and Little Five.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Sure. Of course, of course. As we know to do.
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes. Here in Bloomington, yes.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Yes, that's right. Okay. So the best way for people to...We talked about a lot in a short period of time. I like to read things, so I can really remember them. Where should they go to learn more? And is that the same place they can apply?
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes. So everything you need is on the grants website, which is bloomington.in.gov/neighborhoods/grants. You can find it all there.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Okay. And then let's say I'm not an internet person. Is there a phone number I can call?
Angela Van Rooy:
Yes. You can call me at the HAND Department at 812-349-3505.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Okay. The City of Bloomington putting money back into the neighborhoods that they serve. Thank you for all you do, Angela.
Angela Van Rooy:
Thank you very much.
Mary Catherine Carmichael:
Angela Van Rooy from our Housing Neighborhood Development Department. And I'm Mary Catherine Carmichael, Deputy Mayor. Thanks for joining us.