Since Project 180o/IPL Revive A Neighborhood’s inception ten years ago, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. and neighborhood volunteers have implemented hundreds of projects, planting more than 10,000 trees, painting more than 500 homes, and creating scores of new parks and green spaces to “turn up the progress” in Indianapolis neighborhoods. 

Building upon the success of this program, the Indianapolis Neighborhood Resource Center (INRC) will join with Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. to give neighborhoods the opportunity to vie for a one award that will create an “extreme makeover” of its physical environment after extensive training to build the human capital within that community. 

Project 180º Plus, in partnership with the Indianapolis Neighborhood Resource Center, is an exciting new opportunity formulated to help residents create a vision for improving the quality of life in their community, and to foster skills necessary to implement that vision. The INRC will focus on building capacities of neighborhood residents, including improving skill sets to recruit and organize volunteers, to lead others, and to plan for the sustenance of physical improvements to the neighborhood that will be created in partnership with Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc.

What is Project 180o/IPL Revive A Neighborhood?
A partnership that addresses the needs of neighborhoods using a holistic approach:
• Improving the quality of life by improving the quality of housing and neighborhoods in Indianapolis
• Beautifying and improving the environment by increasing and improving greenspace through tree plantings, parks and gardens
• Enhancing a greater sense of community by bringing diverse groups of people together to work for a common goal:  a better, more beautiful Indianapolis.
 
Partners:  Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc., Indianapolis Power & Light Company, Indianapolis Neighborhood Resource Center, the City of Indianapolis, Department of Public Works, and Lilly Endowment Inc.

What is Project 180o/Plus
Between January 2006 and April 2006, through multiple meetings with the INRC, the neighborhood will develop a “neighborhood action plan” for its community—learning skills such as leadership development, the development and recruitment of volunteers, and other skills critical to improving the neighborhood’s quality of life.   Once this action plan and training are completed, multiple projects will be organized with Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Inc.  These can include, tree planting, garden/ pocket park creation, litter clean ups, median and block adoptions, school ground improvement projects and more. The projects will be implemented based on physical improvement priorities identified by that neighborhood.

“We believe this new partnership is important for comprehensive community development,” says Anne-Marie Predovich, executive director of the INRC. “Developing leadership within neighborhoods is critical to their long-term vitality.”

“A neighborhood will likely identify a variety of ways to improve its quality of life,” says David Forsell, president of Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. “Education, safety, housing, all are critical, as is the health, beauty and vitality of the environment in which people live.”

Applications for grants are due August 31, 2005.  For an application, visit www.kibi.org.

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. is a private non-profit organization dedicated to uniting people to beautify
Indianapolis, improve its environment, and foster pride in our community.

 
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KEEP INDIANAPOLIS BEAUTIFUL
445 N. Pennsylvania Street, Suite 910
Indianapolis, IN  46204
Phone:  264-7555
Fax: 264-7565
www.kibi.org

Contact:
David Forsell, President, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful
Office Phone:  264-7555 ext. 114
Mobile Phone:  223-5180