Mayor Rawlings-Blake Announces $109,000 in Grant Funding Awarded to Baltimore City Anchor Plan to Support Four Projects

City to receive Award of Excellence in Collaboration for its community and economic development strategy focused on Baltimore City neighborhoods

BALTIMORE, Md. (October 28, 2015)—Today, the Baltimore City Board of Estimates approved $109,000 in grant funding for the Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s Baltimore City Anchor Plan (BCAP) to support participating anchor institution projects surrounding the campuses of Bon Secours Baltimore Health System, Johns Hopkins University, MICA, Coppin State University, and the University of Baltimore.

The projects will be located throughout the Coppin Heights, Franklin Square, Boyd-Booth, Fayette Street Outreach, Old Goucher, Charles North, and Mid-Town Belvedere communities.

“When I established the BCAP initiative, I knew that by aligning our resources with those of our City’s largest employers would produce dynamic results,” said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. “This is a win-win for all of us. With the support of grant funding for these important projects, and our continued efforts to work collaboratively with our anchor institutions we will continue to create jobs, attract residents, and drive economic growth—working to build our City by 10,000 families.”

Implemented by the Mayor in June 2014 BCAP is a community and economic development strategy led by the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Neighborhood Development in partnership with Baltimore Housing. The collaborative effort fosters economic growth and development in Baltimore’s neighborhoods through leveraging resources and opportunities between the City and Baltimore City anchor institutions.

BCAP partner institutions include Bon Secours Hospital, Coppin State University, Johns Hopkins University (Homewood Campus), Maryland Institute College of Art, University of Baltimore, Loyola University, Morgan State University, and Notre Dame of Maryland University.

The Baltimore City Anchor Plan Community Development Grants, which were competitively selected and are funded from Baltimore City’s Capital Improvement Program, will be used for the following:

• Bon Secours Baltimore Health System and the Bon Secours of Maryland Foundation, Inc. was awarded $32,500 to complete the Southwest Baltimore Block Beautification Project which will include residential façade improvements such as painting of vacant houses, streetscape and community branding;
• Coppin State University was awarded $25,000 to complete lighting and sound upgrades to the James Weldon Auditorium, which serves as a meeting and performance space for community organizations and local schools;
• Johns Hopkins University and MICA, through its designee the Central Baltimore Partnership, was awarded $40,000 to conduct merchant organizing, business development and recruitment, business outreach and marketing from North Avenue through 25th Streets along North Charles Street;
• The University of Baltimore was awarded $11,884 to construct a community garden and landscaping project, which will include a vertical garden and planter boxes, adjacent to I-83 at Maryland Avenue. Street trees will be planted along St. Paul Street and Maryland Avenue.

Also today Baltimore City is receiving an Award of Excellence in Collaboration in recognition of the BCAP initiative from the Community Development Network of Maryland, an organization that promotes, strengthens and advocates for Maryland’s community development industry.

"This award is presented for an initiative or project that exemplifies community collaboration that cuts across silos and connects groups previously not connected or that are difficult to connect," said Odette Ramos, Executive Director of the Community Development Network of Maryland.”

The City will partner on future projects related to anchor institution and community partnership initiatives, including but not limited to the Morgan Community Mile, Loyola University Maryland’s York Road Initiative, Homewood Community Partners Initiative, and the Southwest Partnership, throughout Baltimore neighborhoods through ongoing grant opportunities and other joint projects.