Cities of Service is thrilled to announce the eight U.S. cities that will participate in Love Your Block, our grant program that brings city leaders and residents together to build stronger neighborhoods, one block at a time. Through the program, cities will award mini-grants to residents and community partners to reduce blight and spur neighborhood-driven change.

We received many competitive applications from across the country. The eight selected cities are taking thoughtful and creative approaches to resident engagement and have demonstrated a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in their program design. Each city will receive a $100,000 grant over two years to support resident-led efforts to fight blight and to fund a Love Your Block Fellow drawn from the community, as well as up to two AmeriCorps VISTA members and technical assistance from expert Cities of Service staff. The AmeriCorps VISTA member(s) and Fellow will serve in city hall to build capacity for resident engagement and help strengthen communities. 

These winning cities include dense urban populations and rural communities across the country with populations ranging from 31,000 to more than 600,000. They will take a variety of approaches to combating blight, including environmental cleanups, exterior home repairs, creating community greenspace, and reactivating vacant lots and public spaces. The winners are: 

• Albany, New York
• Duluth, Minnesota
• El Paso, Texas
• Erie, Pennsylvania
• Jackson, Tennessee
• Salt Lake City, Utah 
• Shawnee, Oklahoma
• White Plains, New York 

Now situated at Johns Hopkins University, Cities of Service is pleased to continue the Love Your Block program with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies and AmeriCorps. Since 2009, Cities of Service has helped nearly 50 cities collaborate with residents to implement Love Your Block. More than 26,000 community members have revitalized over 3,500 community spaces, creating nearly 750 art displays, cleaning 98,000 square feet of graffiti, removing 6 million pounds of trash, and much more.

*We are happy to have Duluth, Minnesota, join our Love Your Block program.