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APPLICATIONS FOR 2025 WILL BE AVAILABLE 

JANUARY 2025

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What are Neighborhood Pride Grants?

 

The Oswego Renaissance Association (ORA) offers several grants each year (between $100 and $3,000), and a small number of larger ones, to support projects and activities that sow the seeds of revitalization by engaging residents in the renaissance of their neighborhoods. The goal is to restore vibrancy to neighborhood streets, public spaces, parks, sidewalks, large buildings, and more.

 

Pride grants are not Block Challenge Grants. They are grants awarded to a whole street for a broad improvement that makes the neighborhood stronger. 

 

How can your neighborhood as a whole be improved? Flowerboxes for multiple houses? More trees along the street? Landscaping on multiple houses? Picket fences along a stretch of houses? Playground upgrades? More greenspace? Flowerbeds and gardens along curbsides? A large building that could be beautified? Or perhaps funds for a block party, or resources to form a neighborhood organization? These are the kinds of projects (and more) that Pride Grants are designed for. For more detail about Neighborhood Pride Grants, please see the Neighborhood Pride Grant FAQ. To get ideas, please see our Examples of Pride Grants page. 

 

 

How to Participate

 

Look to see if your neighborhood is in one of the Target Zones for 2024. Streets in target zones are especially encouraged to apply.

 

Applications are competitive and funding is not guaranteed. If funded, you may also received less than the amount you apply for. Awards are based on availability of funds, neighborhood involvement, quality and scope of project, and location in Target Zones.  

 

Pride Grants are designed to build momentum in neighborhoods involved in revitalization. One way to make an application more competitive is to first apply for, and complete, a Renaissance Block Challenge Grant this year, or next. However, streets that have not completed a Block Challenge Grant can still qualify and be very competitive for Pride Grants.

 

Individual residents may apply, as long as they have organized a total of at least 5 neighbors  in the neighborhood to help/participate with the project. If the project is for a street or block (i.e.; not a park or public amenity), the households must be on the same street or block.

 

Applications requesting > $1000 will require a meeting with the applicant's entire group and an ORA representative.

 

If projects are for public spaces (streets, curbs, sidewalks etc), 100% of the funding is provided/reimbursed by the ORA and permission from the City of Oswego is required. The ORA can advise you on how to obtain permission.

 

If the projects improve multiple private properties (i.e.; homes/ front lawns), ORA provides/reimburses 100% of the funding (minus sales tax) up to the first $300 (total cost of $300 for the entire street, not per house). If total costs exceed $300, then the ORA provides a matching grant (dollar for dollar) for every dollar above the first $300. For more information on, see Pride Grant FAQ.

 

If the project is an event (block party/park event), the ORA provides 100% of the funding up to the first $300, and a matching grant (dollar for dollar) for every dollar above the first $300. Sales tax cannot be reimbursed.

 

The maximum allowable request for any single neighborhood street for a single year is $3000, and common requests would be in the $500-$1500 range. Requests for park/playground improvements, or large/high impact buildings (the Big Impact Grant program) may be higher, but contact the ORA in advance of any application. In all cases, the ORA may fund less than the applicant request, depending on available funding.

 

 

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Pride Grant Application downloadable here in January 2025

 

 

 

Need Ideas?

 

Go to our Neighborhood Pride Grant Examples page.

 

Please read the Pride Grant FAQ before applying. 

 

 

 

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APPLICATIONS FOR PRIDE GRANTS ARE DUE MAY 2025