Madison Park

Community leaders, City of Charlotte staff and elected officials turned out for the second annual Neighborhood Leadership Awards event on Sept. 27. Held at BB&T Ballpark, the celebration featured networking, panel discussions and the Neighborhood Leadership Awards ceremony.

During the ceremony, awards were presented to neighborhood organizations that made outstanding contributions to the improvement of police-community relations, diversity, transportation choices, sustainability initiatives, and neighborhood improvement projects in Charlotte communities. The following neighborhoods and individual received an award:

• Eastway Sheffield Neighborhood Association -- Community Safety Ambassador Award
• Eastwood Acres -- Embracing Diversity Award
• Bridlewood Community Association -- Good Neighbors Award
• Plaza Midwood -- Moving Charlotte Forward Award
• Grier Heights -- Sustainability Pioneer Award
• Hollis Nixon -- People's Choice Award

This June, Neighborhood & Business Services' (NBS) Economic Development division awarded funds to several organizations serving Charlotte's older urban business districts.

The Business District Organization Program (BDOP) provides up to $30,000 annually to eligible business organizations to help strengthen and promote targeted commercial corridors. Funding can be used for a variety of purposes such as supporting annual operating expenses, business district marketing & branding, special events & projects, and business district communications.

FreeMoreWest received a $30,000 grant to assist with hosting the 5K on the Greenway, Taste of FreeMore and the Bryant Park Cornhole Tournament events. The grant will also help create a marketing and communication strategy.

Historic West End Partners received a $11,045 grant to host inaugural Art & Soul events, host local businesses at quarterly Business Council meetings, and develop a new website to market the Historic West End community.

Plaza Midwood Merchants received a $10,850 grant to host annual Holiday Central and quarterly Art Crawl events, and develop a merchant map to market businesses in the districts.

Applications for the BDOP program are accepted in April of each year and funds are awarded annually to support the organization’s business district revitalization efforts. For more information about the BDOP program, click here or contact Veronica Williams-Mosley at vmosley@charlottenc.gov. 

The City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County have launched the Need a Speaker? program, a one-stop web portal where neighborhood organizations and civic groups can request and book speakers from across City and County departments.

With more than 80 available topics, visitors can gain access to expert speakers on the many programs and services offered by the City and County. 

Find out more about the program or request a speaker at needaspeaker.charmeck.org, or by calling (704) 336-2175. 

Plugged into Power2: Your monthly sustainability tip 

October is Energy Awareness Month!

We've collected some great resources on our #Power2CLT website for you to learn how to reduce energy use at your home, complete a home energy audit, and make smarter energy decisions to save money on your utility bills!

Visit power2charlotte.com/2Learn for more information. Also, check out the City's progress in the ENERGY STAR National Building Challenge at power2charlotte.com/2Lead.