2018 Great Urban Parks Campaign Grant Application

Introduction

The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) launched the Great Urban Parks Campaign (GUPC) in 2015 with the primary purpose of improving environmental and social outcomes in underserved communities through promoting and advancing green stormwater infrastructure projects within parks.

Purpose
The purpose of this grant opportunity is to demonstrate the effectiveness of green stormwater infrastructure to positively affect environmental and social change in underserved communities, and to empower residents to be actively engaged in projects that address community needs and meet local stormwater management goals. Through this funding NRPA aims to create replicable model projects that provide strategies and lessons learned that advance the implementation of green stormwater infrastructure projects in parks as a resiliency strategy for communities across the country.

This funding will support green stormwater infrastructure projects in underserved communities that achieve each of the following key objectives:

Improved environmental quality including: enhanced water quality, increased climate resiliency through reduced flooding, improved ability of the site to hold and retain stormwater, improved and increased green space and wildlife habitat.
Increased access to high quality park and recreation space within underserved communities, and increased access to related recreation, environmental education and green job opportunities.
An engaged community empowered to improve local environmental quality through green infrastructure solutions.

Availability of Funding
NRPA will award a total of $2,000,000 in funding through this grant opportunity. NRPA seeks to fund 10-12 communities each between $150,000 and $300,000 to implement green stormwater infrastructure projects in parks. Matching funds are not required; however, it is expected that this grant will supplement secured or anticipated necessary funding to complete the proposed project. The grant check will be distributed in two payments throughout the course of the grant period.

The 2-year grant period will begin October 2018. Projects should expect to be substantially complete by September 2020.

Grant Eligibility/Requirements:

The principal applicant must be a local, municipal or regional government agency (e.g., park and recreation department) or affiliated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. If the applicant is not a local, municipal or regional government agency, the applicant is required to submit a letter of support for the project being proposed from the park and recreation agency director or equivalent.
The applicant must provide at least two (2) letters of support. These could be from an elected official, a partner organization, a community based organization, other municipal agencies, etc. If the applicant is not a local, municipal or regional government agency, a letter of support from the parks department or equivalent is required in addition.
The proposed project must take place at a publicly-owned site(s) in an underserved community.
Significant progress towards the program outcomes must be demonstrated and reported by September 2020. All major construction must be completed by this date.

Successful applicants will:

Demonstrate supportive high-level leadership, particularly from the mayor or similarly placed official(s), for green stormwater infrastructure implementation.
Exemplify collaboration between the park and recreation agency and other municipal agencies (including planning agencies) and/or affiliated nonprofit organizations to implement the proposed green stormwater infrastructure project and support community planning goals/priorities.
Have or create a community engagement plan that considers the particular needs and barriers to participation of local residents and demonstrates how they will address those barriers.
Demonstrate how their approach to green stormwater infrastructure will help meet the goals of a larger community plan to increase climate resiliency and/or improve the quality of the watershed by reducing the amount of stormwater runoff.
Propose innovative green stormwater infrastructure solutions that provide co-benefits to the community.
Identify and describe the underserved community that they will reach, including demographic statistics compared to the surrounding communities and region.
Explain how the project will increase equitable access to high quality parks within the underserved community.
Outline their plan to monitor and evaluate their work to achieve one or more of the three key objectives listed above and indicate the metrics they will use to track results. NRPA will provide an evaluation framework as a guide once the grants have been awarded.
Identify their maintenance plan to sustain the project after the grant period ends, including the community’s role in long-term maintenance.

Application Due Date
Applications are due by 11:59 pm (EDT) Friday, August 3, 2018. It is anticipated that applicants will be notified whether or not they were selected for a grant by September 21, 2018.

Webinar
A grant webinar will be held on Monday, July 9, 2018 at 2:00 pm EST to go over the goals of the grant and answer frequently asked questions. Participants will also be given the opportunity to ask questions. Click here to register.

Saving your Application
Please ensure responses are recorded accurately. You can save your progress and continue at a later time by clicking the "Save and continue later" link at the top of the page. Note: Only completed pages are saved - please enter a draft answer for each question on the page if you plan to save and return to your work later.

The application is available in PDF format to assist in preparation of responses, but the application MUST be submitted through this online form. For a PDF copy, please click HERE.

Definitions
Green Stormwater Infrastructure refers to using or mimicking natural processes to prevent, capture, and/or filter stormwater runoff.

For the purposes of this grant opportunity, underserved community refers to vulnerable populations, including minority, new Americans, low income, rural, tribal, and indigenous populations that may be disproportionately experiencing degraded environmental quality identified in the applicant’s proposal.

Questions
For questions, please see the Frequently Asked Questions document for more information.
For questions not covered in the FAQ or issues with the application, please email GUPC@nrpa.org.