Weyerhaeuser’s Post

You may have heard that the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council has opened submissions on its Three-Year Plan (2024 – 2027) which proposes to cut its current funding of $120,000 per year to Te Mata Park Trust. This is a third of our annual funding, the loss of which could have very real consequences, including the possibility that health and safety issues (brought about by under-funded maintenance) could lead to Park closures.    Cutting a third of our operating budget could put Te Mata Park Trust in an untenable position; fail to protect the region’s most important recreational, historical and cultural taonga; and undermine all the investment and volunteer time that has gone into the Park in recent years.   We know that times are tough, and budgets are stretched, but if you believe that the Park should continue to be part-funded by HBRC, please have your say and make a submission. With the community’s support we hope to influence HBRC to continue to fund Te Mata Park Trust and ensure the Park is protected and enhanced for future generations.    If you would like to make a submission to HBRC to support the retention of Te Mata Park’s funding, please go to the Protect the Peak page on the Te Mata Park website where we have summarised some useful information to assist you. To make the process easier, we have prepared some text that you might like to use in your submission. Thank you for supporting Te Mata Park. #protectthepeak https://lnkd.in/gX57wYry

Lobbying for access to national grant funding is a key NALC policy objective. They successfully lobbied for local councils to have access to the Community Ownership Fund, and they've done it again! A new Community Green Spaces Fund has been announced by Defra. £7 million will be available until the end of March 2025 for rural organisations INCLUDING LOCAL COUNCILS to support capital improvements to rural community greenspaces in England. It is for projects that aim to create, restore, and enhance green spaces such as landscaping, planting, installation of natural play facilities, paths and seating. The current rural definition of under 10,000 is expected to be applied. So, you may have projects in the pipeline or you could start thinking about how you may use the funding. Rural community groups and local councils interested in the fund are encouraged to register their details with ACRE to receive more information about the fund when this becomes available, we’ll also be sharing details when we have them. https://lnkd.in/gCpaHeru? #gaptc #localgov #funding

We’re pleased to share a new impact report for the East Metro Main Street Economic Revitalization Program, which supported 42 Saint Paul nonprofits and businesses that faced immense challenges the past four years due to the pandemic, civil unrest and other obstacles. With support from Mardag Foundation and other funding partners, the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development granted $3.7 million to nonprofits and $3.3 million to businesses in the Snelling-University-Rice Cultural District, the East Side community and along West Seventh Street in Saint Paul. 100% of the funded projects serve communities that have been historically under- and dis-invested by traditional funding, and 85% of the projects are owned or led by people of color. We’re proud to have been a partner in this program and support the vitality of East Metro communities. Read more about the projects and their impact → https://hubs.ly/Q02x4CsJ0 #EastMetroMainStreet #SaintPaul #CommunityDevelopment #StPaulMN

Some important nuance for this conversation based on recently-released data from Minnesota Council on Foundations: When it comes to in-state investments, Minnesota foundations are woefully under-investing outside the Metro. Of the 3 foundation types in the report (community, private, and corporate), only community foundations are investing in Greater Minnesota proportionally to population. If my math is right ( 🤞 ), 17% of private foundations' in-state investments went to Greater MN, and only 9% of corporate giving did so.

This is a great piece highlighting cross-sector partnerships. I am particularly interested in how we “seed stronger awareness of the community development and healthcare sectors as go-to partners for impacting health.” There is such an opportunity to “work together to take their collective work farther upstream.” #socialdeterminantsofhealth

For #GivingTuesday, consider giving to the Omaha Community Foundation's Let Good Grow Fund. It supports all of the vital work we are doing in the community. In December 2022, the multi-building apartment complex Legacy Crossing was closed due to critically unsafe conditions. Days before Christmas, in below-zero temperatures, more than 150 families had mere hours to find a place to stay for the night, and then a new permanent place to live. The city called on us to collect donations as quickly as possible. Because of support from our Let Good Grow donors, we were able to begin fundraising immediately, ultimately raising more than $260,000 in a matter of days. Those funds were transferred to nonprofit partners who were able to find short- and long-term housing, pay rental application fees and deposits, and assist people moving into new, safer homes. This is just one example of how swiftly and accurately OCF can direct dollars toward local needs. Others include:   * Distributing $40 million in ARPA and CARES Acts funds to local nonprofits.  * Managing $2 million in community loans focused on assisting small businesses and increasing affordable housing.  * Providing a year-long training program for local nonprofit leaders to help build their organizations. Consider donating: Omahafoundation.org/Good

🚨 Reminder that Round 4 is the final round of the Community Ownership Fund and there will be two bidding windows to allocate the remaining funding. Round 4 Window 1 is open now until 10 April. The £150 Million fund exists to help local communities across the UK to take control of assets, amenities or facilities that are at risk of closure - from parks to pubs, lidos to libraries. Groups can apply for up to £2M through the Community Ownership Fund to purchase or lease a local asset or help cover refurbishments (with most bids expected to be up to £250k of capital funding). All funding provided through COF must be ‘matched’ 20% or more from alternative sources. Find out if the fund is right for your organisation and get help understanding eligibility and how to write a strong application for the fund. You can find resources, sign up for one of our webinars and get in touch with our advice service by visiting the page on My Community: 👉 https://lnkd.in/e9QWPb_A #CommunityOwnershipFund #Communities #Community #CommunityOwnership #LevellingUp #Heritage #Funding

How to Increase Home Valuations in Flint: Neighborhood Associations & Grant Opportunities Discover how neighborhood associations can improve home valuations in Flint, allowing residents to benefit from grants and funding opportunities. Learn why establishing a neighborhood association can help secure funds for crucial repairs and renovations. Let's explore the impact of grants and ARPA money on restoring homes in Flint. #FlintHousing #NeighborhoodAssociations #GrantOpportunities #HomeValuations #ARPAFunding #CommunityDevelopment #FlintMichigan #RepairsAndRenovations #BuildingStrongCommunities #RestoringHomes

Come and find out about where I live, an amazing example of how community-owned housing looks and works, at our open day on 25th May. Chapeltown Cohousing is an amazing blueprint of affordable, community-led housing that has the potential to solve so many problems of our housing crisis. It provides those who live here with: 💥 A community to combat loneliness. 💥 Multiple diverse voices, reducing social division. 💥 Affordable rent with no private profit. 💥 Healthy and sustainable houses. 💥 A super strong sense of place. As a model it has the potential to help with: 🌼 Brownfield land development. 🌼 Increasing the quality of housing. 🌼 Keeping the private rental market in check. 🌼 Connecting people to the land they live on. 🌼 Promoting stewardship (of our neighbourhood, city, planet). So come down if you are interested and feel free to share :) There will be lunch !

We love small towns!  These are the wonderful places that form the backbone of America.  They are the main streets where every shop is owned by a local family, and there is a feeling of delight each time you walk through the door.  These are warm, caring communities where you know your neighbors, you care about their families – and they care about you.  There is a community spirit, a community pride, and a sense that these are the places we can truly call home.  And this is precisely why we created the Sunshine Initiative, along with our non-profit Small Town Turnaround organization – to revitalize and regenerate the positive energy that radiates and emanates throughout these wonderful small-town communities.   I grew up in a small town, known as the ‘Sunshine Town,’ Newport, New Hampshire.  Located in the western part of the state, Newport embodies this spirit of community in every possible way.  We cheer for our Newport High School Tiger athletes.  We attend Town Meeting, and we congregate at the Salt Hill Pub.  We love our Winter Carnival, the oldest winter carnival in the nation, and we go all out to welcome guests at our annual Apple Pie Fest on the Newport town common every August.  And these are just a few of the truly ‘Newport’ things that make our town special and unique.   The truth is that every town has its unique aspects, and in a sense, its own ‘story.’  And growing up in a small town or living in one as an adult, you cannot help but pick up the essential elements that define the community.  And, as you do, you develop a deep identity and a feeling of mutual respect and togetherness with others in the community.  It’s really something special. You are more than simply a number – in a small town, you are a valued member of the community – in a word, you are ‘special.’   With this in mind, we are dedicating this edition of the Sunshine Report – to a celebration of our small towns - in New Hampshire and across our great nation.  The more that we can foster a feeling of respect for the individual, the stronger our sense of community.  The greater our civility, the stronger our bonds are to one another.  And not surprisingly, these values form the core of the experiences we find in our small towns.