Tulsa receives $70,000 grant to join Love Your Block program

Tulsa has entered the Love Your Block program to launch resident-led neighborhood improvements. The city secures seventy thousand dollars in funding to clear lots and reclaim public space.

The Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University leads the initiative. Tulsa is one of 25 local governments selected across 20 states.

“Residents often have the clearest view of what their neighborhoods need and Love Your Block helps mayors and municipalities bring them into the work and see those ideas through,” said Francisca M. Rojas, Ph. D., Executive Director of the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins. “That translates to tangible improvements communities want, and that they lead, with their city’s full support, and shows what happens when local governments invite the public in to solve problems and deliver, together.”

The funding will help residents create community solutions. Tulsa will also receive support from the center and a program fellow.

“The Love Your Block Initiative builds off the momentum of ongoing engagement and projects like the Riverwood Neighborhood Improvement Strategy, enacting Alert Neighbors programs that empower residents and building trust with the officers in the community,” said Tulsa City Council Chair Karen Gilbert, member of the Riverwood Neighborhood Improvement Strategy management team. “These initiatives are all part of a strategy to bring people together to build a safer future for Riverwood.”

District 2 Tulsa City Councilor Anthony Archie said the program will aid the Riverwood area.

“Tulsa’s Love Your Block Initiative will be a game-changer for Riverwood residents and community members,” said Archie. “It will help to build capacity in neighborhood leadership and support grassroots efforts and community-led projects.”

Tulsa joins 24 other cities in the newest group:

• Albuquerque, New Mexico
• Aurora, Illinois
• Birmingham, Alabama
• Mobile, Alabama
• Chattanooga, Tennessee
• Columbia, South Carolina
• Deerfield Beach, Florida
• Dubuque, Iowa
• Eugene, Oregon
• Everett, Washington
• Frederick, Maryland
• Greensboro, North Carolina
• Winston-Salem, North Carolina
• Harlingen, Texas
• Hoboken, New Jersey
• Newark, New Jersey
• Jersey City, New Jersey
• Honolulu, Hawaii
• La Crosse, Wisconsin
• Lancaster, Pennsylvania
• Lansing, Michigan
• Macon, Georgia
• South Fulton, Georgia
• Wilmington, Delaware

The national effort began in 2009. It pairs local governments with community members to complete public works projects.

Since 2009, the program has helped 50 governments across 33 states mobilize over 88,000 citizens. Participants cleared seven million pounds of trash, made 800 art displays, and cleaned 550,000 square feet of graffiti.