What Happened
The cities of Las Vegas, Hartford, and Greensboro, North Carolina, have each received $1 million in the first round of funding from the “Strong Cities, Stronger Communities” grant program, which is operated by the U.S. Economic Development Administration.
So What?
Tracking federal grants is becoming increasingly critical for fiscally strained municipalities. Gov1 regularly covers these grants to ensure readers are kept abreast of the types of awards available from federal agencies.
The Grants
Strong Cities, Stronger Communities or “SC2" was launched in July 2011 to generate innovative ideas, strategies, and perspectives that cities can use to advance economic-development planning in their city and region. The grants will help local governments “develop and execute their economic vision and strategies"; they will provide necessary technical assistance and access to federal agency expertise, and will create new public and private sector partnerships.
Ultimately, six cities will each receive $1 million. They will then hold their own challenge competitions, in which teams compete to create the most comprehensive economic development plan.
Additionally, the Department of Housing and Urban Development is allocating $5 million through the SC2 Network. The Network will aggregate public and private resources to provide additional cities and towns with a single portal to seek expertise and federal resources. Experts will provide aid concerning holistic policy and implementation support, operational efficiency, needs documentation, and assistance deliverability. Ultimately, HUD will allocate $5 million through an intermediary to chosen municipalities.
Details on each of the grant recipients is below:
Greensboro, North Carolina
As part of its grant win, Greensboro will be required to offer a matching contribution of $250,000. It also will be bringing in experts from around the country to help evaluate the best possible methods for transforming its economic development programs. The primary focus will be on high-tech, health care and research.
Hartford
The capital of Connecticut will focus its efforts on attracting serial entrepreneurs, growing advanced manufacturing companies, and increasing global competitiveness.
Las Vegas
Sin city will be providing workforce skills training based on local business needs, educaton programs correlating with workforce certifications, and workforce skills remediation to secure certifications for business operations.
The deadline for the 2012 awards was July 23.
More on Federal Grants
Gov1 will be hosting a regional conference on November 8th with Northwestern University in Chicago including a session on “The Five Steps to Winning Federal Grants,” led by Lauren Steiner of Grants Plus. Don’t miss this valuable opportunity to educate your municipality on federal grants.