City Council on Tuesday approved a resolution awarding 15 neighborhood organizations a total of $34,525 as part of the Neighborhood Small Grants Program.

The program is designed to strengthen neighborhoods in the City of Knoxville by supporting a wide range of community-based initiatives through grants and technical assistance.

“We focus on resident-controlled, resident-led neighborhood groups such as neighborhood watch groups, neighborhood associations, tenant associations, and homeowners associations to encourage citizens to engage with one another,” said David Massey, who heads the City’s Office of Neighborhoods.

Funds received from the Neighborhood Small Grants Program must be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis with the value of donated goods and services, the value of volunteer labor, and money pledged from other sources. At least one-third of the match must be in the form of volunteer labor provided by residents of the neighborhood.

Ten of the 15 awards will be made to the East Tennessee Community Design Center, which under contract with the City acts as fiscal sponsor for neighborhood grant recipients that are not tax-exempt. 

The 15 projects and neighborhoods selected are:

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $2,950 to support Adair Gardens Residents Association’s Gateways to Adair project, including outreach efforts in the neighborhood, construction and installation of neighborhood entrance signs, and landscaping.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $1,970 to support Carriage Lane Condominium Association’s preparations for its 50th Anniversary Celebration of the development’s creation as the first condo community in the state, removal of an aging and unsightly entrance sign, and construction of a new sign.   

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $600 to support Fountaincrest Neighborhood Association’s “Get the Word Out – We’re Organizing” project, including a newsletter, meeting reminder signs, meeting supplies and potluck supplies.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $2,100 to support various youth programs in which Green Hills Residents Association is a participant, including the Leadership Knoxville Scholars Program and an annual youth conference. 

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $3,100 to support Historic Holston Hills Community Club’s project to enhance the accessibility and usefulness of Holston Hills Community Park.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $3,100 for the Inskip Community Association to cover a portion of the expenses related to the construction and maintenance of a community garden as part of its collaborative “Nurturing Gardens to Nurture Families” initiative.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $3,100 for Island Home Park Neighborhood Association’s branding and beautification of entrances to the neighborhood. 

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $3,100 to cover a portion of the costs for Lindbergh Forest Neighborhood Association’s placemaking project, including expansion of the volunteer base, installation of neighborhood signs, landscaping, clean-ups, and a neighborhood breakfast and walking tour.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $600 for Our Community Organization’s plan for a community cook-out, a community forum, and increased attendance at neighborhood meetings in the area of Paul Hogue Park.

• East Tennessee Community Design Center — $3,100 for Timbercrest Neighborhood Association’s community and communication initiatives, including the printing of fliers and newsletters, announcement signs, website hosting, folding tables, inflatable movie screen, resurfacing of a basketball court, and various supplies for community events.

• Morningside Heights Homeowners Association — $955 for office equipment that will enhance production of neighborhood newsletters and for the refurbishment of the gazebo at Odd Fellows Cemetery.

• Oakwood Lincoln Park Neighborhood Association — $1,850 to create and promote a 2.29-mile sidewalk loop trail that showcases 200 differently styled homes, encourages walking and healthy living, and brings neighbors together, and increase neighborhood watch activity.

• Old North Knoxville, Inc. — $3,000 to cover a portion of the cost for its “Marking Our Streets and Our History” project with new street signs that include both the street name and the neighborhood name, along with landscaping around each sign.  

• Parkridge Community Organization — $2,000 for a PCO beautification project to plant thousands of daffodil bulbs in the grassy strips between the street and sidewalk throughout the neighborhood.

• RiverHill Gateway Neighborhood Association — $3,000 for the purchase and installation of a neighborhood sign, installation of picnic tables at a community gathering spot, and a Grand Opening Celebration.