The North Dakota Department of Commerce announced today that the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) Public Space Initiative – Placemaking Planning Grant application window will be open July 15-Sept. 1.
The intent of the EDA Public Space Initiative – Placemaking Planning Grant is to enhance the statewide attraction of businesses, promotion of economic activity, and the retention and attraction of workforce. Commerce was awarded $1 million through the EDA Statewide Planning Program to administer the grant funds to North Dakota entities.
“Community-driven placemaking is important for generating long term economic growth by creating healthy, prosperous communities where people want to live, work, play, and learn,” Commerce Interim Commissioner Shawn Kessel said. “This grant provides the Main Street Initiative the opportunity to build out agency partnerships with a common vision.”
The goal of the EDA Public Space Initiative – Placemaking Planning Grant is to invest in the planning and design to enhance the statewide attraction of businesses, promotion of economic activity, and the retention and attraction of talented workers to strengthen the economic resiliency of communities across North Dakota from the economic impacts of COVID-19.
Placemaking is a multi-faceted approach to planning, designing, and managing public spaces, that are critical to economic resilience and workforce attraction and retention. Placemaking as an economic development strategy, also called place-based economic development, is the practice of using a community's public amenities to make economic progress.
Up to $100,000 of funding per award is available, with no match required for eligible applicants. All awarded funds must be expended by Oct. 1, 2023. Architectural designs, infrastructure planning, implementation and final architectural plans do not qualify for this grant.
Eligible applicants for the EDA Public Space Initiative – Placemaking Planning Grant are city, county, and tribal entities.
Commerce will be hosting an informative webinar to provide ideas and tools for communities that are interested in applying for the grant at 10:15-11 a.m. CT on July 12. Registration for the webinar can be found at msnd.link/EDA-Webinar.
More information about the EDA Public Space Initiative – Place Making Planning Grant can be found at msnd.link/EDA-Placemaking.
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