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Funders
Collaborate to Invest in Neighborhoods |
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In the mid-1990s, a group of Baltimore-area grantmakers, concerned that a growing number of city neighborhoods were showing signs of decline, joined forces to create a special funding pool. Their goal was to attract new funding partners and strengthen local community development organizations so they could better serve Baltimore's neighborhoods.
Housed at the Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers, the Baltimore Neighborhood Collaborative (BNC) pools funding from banks, including Provident Bank, Bank of America, SunTrust Bank, PNC Bank and Citi Foundation; foundations, such as the Hoffberger Foundation, Enterprise Community Partners, Goldseker Foundation, Abell Foundation, Baltimore Community Foundation and Annie E. Casey Foundation; and local businesses, including Black & Decker Corporation and the Baltimore Equitable Insurance Foundation.
The opportunity to work with local funders has also drawn substantial support from national funders including the Ford and Surdna Foundations.
Since 1996, BNC has raised $7 million to strengthen communities across Baltimore. Unlike many individual funders, the collaborative is willing to take risks, commit to multi-year grants, and work closely with grantee organizations to respond to new opportunities and challenges.
With BNC's support, local organizations have stimulated homeowner investment in undervalued communities, created new homes that are affordable to low and moderate-income families, and provided housing counseling to people thinking of buying a home or trying to save their home from foreclosure. BNC is promoting the idea of transit-centered community development to attract new investment and create opportunities for residents in neighborhoods surrounding transit hubs.
"One of BNC's biggest contributions is in helping to fund the 'soft costs' that corporations have less interest in funding," notes Rahn Barnes, vice president and community development manager for Provident Bank, one of BNC's founding banks and a long-time supporter. "Community organizations need to keep competent and professional staff and they need to keep the lights on," Barnes says. "BNC has been able to help build infrastructure for a lot of groups that then went on to do bigger and greater things" notes Barnes. |
"What's unique about the Collaborative is that members pool their resources and ideas and jointly decide how to best use them toward revitalization" notes Ann Sherrill, BNC director. |
