BALTIMORE, MD. (Thursday, September 1, 2022) - Today, Mayor Brandon M. Scott announced the third round of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant awards from the Mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs (MORP) to nonprofit organizations focused on community development, including affordable housing, youth services, and food insecurity.

The awards – totaling just over $13 million to 15 different organizations – span the Scott Administration's priority pillars outlined in the Mayor’s Action Plan, including building public safety, equitable neighborhood development, prioritizing our youth, and clean and healthy communities.

"This next round of funding sends a clear statement that we are deeply committed to supporting organizations that provide critical services in and for communities throughout Baltimore," said Mayor Brandon M. Scott. "Baltimore’s renaissance is contingent upon the incredible work our nonprofit community does day in and day out on behalf of our residents. We are proud to leverage ARPA funds to advance our shared vision for a Baltimore that ensures the safety, economic opportunity, and social support for all Baltimoreans regardless of zip code, ethnicity, or sexual identity."

The first two rounds of funding through the Mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs awarded 17 nonprofits with grants totaling just over $14 million. The grant funding from the Recovery Office to nonprofits in this latest round brings the total number of nonprofits to 32 and the total amount of funding to just over $27 million out of the City’s $641 million ARPA allocation.

City and quasi-government agencies that have already made ARPA awards to nonprofits for either direct economic relief or specific initiatives include: the Baltimore Civic Fund, the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, and the Baltimore City Health Department. In addition to ARPA, the City of Baltimore has supported nonprofits through other federal funding sources to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency, such as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The selected nonprofit recipients are as follows:

• Aequo Foundation will receive $2,000,000 to support the redevelopment of vacant properties into affordable housing, leading to increased public safety, and remediate homes through the removal of lead and other health hazards.

• Parity Baltimore Incorporated will receive $700,000 to help prevent homelessness as well as wealth and land loss within Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) communities. The SOS Fund, a joint collaboration between Fight Blight Bmore and Parity, offers beneficiaries assistance such as tax sale foreclosure prevention, ground rent redemption, homeowners tax credit application, mutual aid support, and many other resources.

• Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland will receive $700,000 to provide counseling services, including housing counseling, and host mortgage prevention clinics designed to empower individuals and families to maintain and preserve homeownership,

• ReBUILD Metro will receive $1,250,000 to support affordable housing development in Johnston Square, including funding to develop abandoned and dilapidated properties within two blocks of 1100 Greenmount Avenue.

• Rebuilding Together Baltimore, Inc. will receive $575,000 to serve households who are physically and financially unable to make necessary health and safety repairs to their homes, helping to keep them in their homes, prevent blight, and stabilize neighborhoods that have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

• South Baltimore Community Land Trust (SBCLT) will receive $450,000 to acquire and rehabilitate vacant homes into affordable housing for homebuyers in the Curtis Bay, Cherry Hill, and Brooklyn neighborhoods of South Baltimore.

• Green & Healthy Homes Initiative Inc. will receive $2,500,000 to fund home repairs for low-income Baltimore households to remediate lead hazards, asthma triggers, safety hazards, and energy loss.

• Black Yield Institute will receive $1,000,000 to support the development of an urban farm to include training and educational resources, and provide infrastructure, such as outdoor refrigeration and washing stations, to support food aggregation for city farms.

• Leadenhall Baptist Church will receive $200,000 to provide food and other non-perishables to the Sharp-Leadenhall Community with the goal of positively impacting and improving the health of the residents by addressing, mitigating, and alleviating food insecurity.

• The B&O Railroad Museum, Inc. will receive $185,000 to add green space to the B&O Railroad Museum’s backyard, creating a valuable space for community members, guests, and Baltimore City school groups and enabling outdoor gatherings and space for social distancing to support COVID-19 mitigation.

• No Boundaries Coalition Inc. will receive $750,000 to provide youth income and workforce development opportunities that will improve civic engagement, increase employability, and strengthen personal and professional goals all while supplementing household income by providing an hourly wage/stipend to participants.

• International Rescue Committee will receive $325,000 to support workforce development programs focused on COVID-impacted low-income and Limited English Proficient (LEP) humanitarian immigrants who reside in Baltimore City. Services will connect clients to local jobs through assistance with resume building, interview preparation, public transit orientation, and, for parents, access to childcare services and vouchers.

• Banner Neighborhoods will receive $950,000 to support the renovation of their Preston Street classroom space. ARPA funding will also support academic tutoring, mentoring, program facilitators, sports coaches, and other support staff dedicated to providing services to youth, including students experiencing psychological or behavioral difficulties.

• Volo Kids Foundation will receive $1,000,000 to support the operation of the BActive program, providing Baltimore kids with access to quality, structured sports programming in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sports clinics facilitated by BActive will teach lessons in communication, body positivity, and confidence-building through sports, with a focus on trauma-informed care. BActive will connect kids, particularly those in recreation deserts, with ongoing Baltimore City Recreation and Parks (BCRP) programming.
• Southwest Partnership will receive $500,000 to help renovate the Poppleton Recreation Center, enabling it to reopen as a safe space for recreation in the Poppleton neighborhood. Once renovated, the Center will provide programming for children and youth and offer space for senior programming.

Nonprofit organizations submitted 322 proposals that were eligible for ARPA funding. The submitted proposals totaled $719 million-more than the City’s total ARPA allocation through the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF). Additional announcements of awards to nonprofit organizations will be made in the coming months.