Elwick hoping for a project funding LIFT

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/11/2011 (5107 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The province plans to invest $360,000 in a Maples neighbourhood over the next four years as part of efforts to help revitalize the community.

Neighbourhoods Alive!, a provincially-funded revitalization program, announced plans earlier this year to expand into a handful of non-inner city neighbourhoods in Winnipeg including Elwick.

The program provides community organizations in designated neighbourhoods with support to rebuild their neighbourhoods.

Neighbourhoods Alive! representatives hosted an Oct. 28 meeting at Elwick School to provide area residents with details of the program and help develop a strategy for the community.

“Money will be earmarked early in the new year so it is important to hear early from area residents about potential proposals and what to do with the money,” said Sue Crielaard, executive director at the Elwick Village Centre.

Carly Duboff, a project officer with Localized Improvement Fund for Tomorrow, or LIFT, said Neighbourhoods Alive! will inject $450,000 into five Winnipeg communities next year alone.

“The plan is for $90,000 per year, per location for four years,” she said.

Duboff said interest in the program outside of the inner city has grown since it was first introduced in Winnipeg in 2000.

She said the key to the program being successful in Elwick will be community involvement.

“The idea is that community revitalization really comes from within, from residents associations and other non-profits. It is important to get resident input to make sure services already existing in the area are not duplicated,” she said.

Crielaard said she has been impressed by the level of community interest in Elwick to date. Additional meetings in the community have already been scheduled, she added.

Duboff said the next steps for Elwick residents and community groups will be to examine projects for potential funding.

Any community group of residents, volunteers or non-profit organization serving residents in the community can apply for project funding.  For grants over $5,000 applicants must be an incorporated non-profit organization.  

Duboff stressed that while applicants aren’t required to be Maples residents, the project or program they are applying on behalf of must benefit the neighbourhood.

Duboff said LIFT anticipates seeing a broad range of potential Elwick revitalization endeavours, including community development and engagement, beautification projects, workshops and training or short-term project-based staff funding.  

Other areas LIFT and Neighbourhoods Alive! have announced plans for include Weston, Osborne-Mayfair, Alpine-Lavallee and South Pembina. Last year, Neighbourhoods Alive! announced expansion plans into the Elmwood area.

rob.brown@canstarnews.com