$50,000 Offered for Resident-led Projects

IMAGINE BIG

GINI offering $50,000 in new, large-scale resident driven projects

Funding will support resident-led projects across the city

Grants of up to $50,000 are now available to Indianapolis neighborhood-based organizations, courtesy of The Great Indy Neighborhoods Initiatives (GINI) and it's new IMAGINE BIG program.

"Neighborhoods are suffering right along with everyone else as this recession drags on," said Anne-Marie Taylor. "We've developed this new program as a way to help neighbors come together in ways that will offer benefits for many years to come."

IMAGINE BIG is in addition to the regular Indianapolis Matching Awards for Great Indy Neighborhoods (IMAGINE), which have been awarded on a quarterly basis since June 2007. While IMAGINE provides small matching grants from $500 to $5,000, IMAGINE BIG will provide over $5,000 and up to $50,000 of funding to neighborhood-based organizations to deepen and expand the impact of resident engagement efforts, especially those that have already received IMAGINE funding.

GINI asks neighborhoods to think creatively about potential projects to receive IMAGINE BIG funding. Multi-neighborhood collaborations that increase the quality of life in a community; intergenerational projects that use neighborhood assets to engage neighbors together; or, organizing efforts to support micro-business in a neighborhood: these are all examples of potential IMAGINE BIG funded projects.

IMAGINE BIG grant recipients must offer 1 dollar of matching resources for every 2 dollars granted, but may count volunteer labor, donated materials, supplies, services or cash as part of that match.

The deadline to submit Letters of Intent to Apply for IMAGINE BIG is April 1. The GINI Engagement Working Group will review all Letters and invite selected potential applicants to apply for IMAGINE BIG in mid-April. Letters of Intent to Apply will be accepted from neighborhood-based organizations working in collaboration to increase involvement of residents and partners in communities across Indianapolis.

Interested neighborhood-based organizations can access the application package, guidelines and more information online, by going to www.greatindyneighborhoods.org, www.inrc.org, emailing imaginehelp@inrc.org, or calling (317) 920-0330.

GINI (www.greatindyneighborhoods.org) is a 3-year program promotes comprehensive community development to strengthen and improve the quality of life in local neighborhoods. Comprehensive community development focuses on collaboratively improving all aspects of neighborhoods that impact residents' quality of life.