Improving Public Spaces in the Greater Philadelphia Region
If an application has already been started in response to this RFP, please visit the Concepts and Proposals in Progress section in the Grantee Portal to view and/or continue the application process.
Background
The William Penn Foundation has a long history of making grants to support public spaces that are accessible to the public at no cost and that positively impact our communities.
Research confirms that public and community spaces provide a wide range of benefits from strengthening social relationships and community connections to supporting physical and mental health and wellbeing. Public spaces can also strengthen community resilience in the face of climate change and other environmental impacts. From parks and gardens to recreation and community centers, public spaces are integral to the fabric of our neighborhoods and society.
Many of Philadelphia’s public spaces have deferred maintenance needs that reduce usership, undermine operational efficiency, and create unsafe conditions. Poorly maintained public spaces can increase fear of crime, depress neighborhood property values, and signal to residents that they are not valued, among other adverse effects.
For these reasons stakeholders emphasized to us the importance of prioritizing improvements to existing public spaces over funding new public spaces that might then fall into disrepair. There is a large opportunity to fund capital, operational, and programmatic improvements that will lead to the repairs, ongoing maintenance, and activation of these public spaces.
Opportunity Overview
The William Penn Foundation (WPF) aims to support efforts that will contribute to public space improvements in a variety of ways, including by increasing activation and stewardship, expanding and diversifying usership, and improving the quality of facilities. We hope to fund improvements that will help to produce safer, better maintained, more active, welcoming, and higher-quality public spaces.
Public spaces are defined by WPF as those that are managed, free, and open to the public. Public spaces include but are not limited to urban gardens, urban farms, parks, parklets, recreation centers, libraries, and community centers. The Foundation does not include right-of-way areas like sidewalks or bus shelters as eligible for public space improvement funding.
Grants made through this RFP will focus on the need for better and more equitable improvements through capital investments, maintenance, operations, and programming of existing public and community spaces. We are also eager to support work focused on improving the long-term stewardship of existing public spaces through investments in the physical site and/or at an organizational level through staffing, governance, and personal changes.
We are requesting proposals for one to three-year projects to improve public spaces in Philadelphia. After reviewing proposals, WPF will conduct site visits and gather additional information from a limited number of organizations.
Organizations that propose projects in partnership with other applicants will be considered on their individual merits. However, the Foundation recognizes that making significant progress on the objective is difficult and believes that the most competitive proposals are likely to be those that include robust partnerships that leverage complementary strengths, resources, and expertise.
Furthermore, the Foundation recognizes that there are many different tactics or approaches that could be used to advance the objective stated above. All proposals that meet the review criteria described below are encouraged.
WPF has $4.5 million available to advance this objective currently. There is no minimum or maximum that organizations may request but we aim to attract and fund a range of projects. The grant amount requested should be commensurate with the contribution that the project will make to the overall objective.
At least one third of the total amount awarded under this RFP will be reserved for grants to organizations that have budgets under $1 million per year and/or are led by individuals who are members of groups with a history of discrimination or exclusion. Projects that demonstrate a diversity of funding sources will also be more strongly considered.
Full Request for Proposals (RFP) and Application
Download the full RFP packet for more information about this opportunity including eligibility, review criteria, learning and evaluation, budget, and link to an application template.
All applications must be submitted through the Grants Portal.
Webinar
Interested organizations are invited to participate in an optional informational webinar on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 at 1:00PM ET. Following the live webinar, a recording will be posted to this page.