After 18 months of planning and engaging West End neighborhood residents, the Salisbury Police Department (SPD) is gearing up to open grant applications for Rowan County 501(c)(3) organizations next month. Successful applicants must use the money to benefit the West End neighborhood’s residents and/or community organizations. These local grant funding opportunities originate from the SPD’s $800,000 Department of Justice (DOJ) Byrne Criminal Justice Incentive (BCJI) Grant.
The West End Salisbury Transformed Empowered Neighborhood Development (WESTEND) Grant announcement was made in January 2022. The initiative focuses on building, bringing, and connecting existing community groups to help revitalize the community and provide alternative responses for crime reduction. The WESTEND Grant was developed in partnership with the city’s parks and recreation and planning and neighborhood departments.
Organizations interested in bringing services to the nearly one-square-mile West End neighborhood are invited to attend information sessions on Thursday, Dec. 14, and Thursday, Jan. 8, 2024, via Zoom before they apply for local community grants. The registration link will be provided at salisburync.gov/bcji and via the SPD Facebook page.
The local grant application period opens Monday, Jan. 15, 2024, and closes Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. The Rowan County United Way will administer the grant awards, while a separate West End neighborhood-led grant review committee will select the awardees.
Local community grants are just one of the seven goals developed by the subcommittee of the community-based leaders. Other goals include community beautification, storytelling of the lived experiences and history of the West End, public safety responses such as youth mentoring, Ceasefire, speed bumps and lighting, a Community Council and small business growth grants.
For more information, please contact WESTEND Grant coordinator Chanel Nestor at chanel.nestor@salisburync.gov or (980) 565-5517.