City Celebrates Love Your Block Mini-Grant Winners

Today, the City of Evanston announced the recipients of its second round of Love Your Block mini-grants. Members of the Love Your Block Steering Group selected 21 projects from 60 applications from residents and community groups proposing creative solutions to address local challenges and work together with the City to improve neighborhoods and public spaces. Individual grant amounts range from $500 to $2,500, with a total of $45,000 awarded for projects. Recipients will lead revitalization projects that strengthen neighborhoods and create lasting community impact. 

The winning mini-grant projects highlight a strong commitment to community pride, neighborhood beautification, and civic engagement, with a focus on sustainability and improving safety, accessibility, and stability for older adults and low-income households in the 2nd, 5th, 8th, and 9th Wards.

Winning projects include:

2nd Ward

• $2,200 for Restoring Pride on McDaniel Ave: Porch Safety, Curb Appeal, and a Little Free Library for Our Block
• $800 for Community Pollinator Garden
• $2,500 for Safe Steps and Seasonal Pride
• $1,800 for Evanston's Spectacular Urban Forest
• $1,905 for Front Porch Repair
• $2,500 for Exterior Upgrades

5th Ward

• $2,500 for Empty Lot Beautification
• $2,500 for Alley-Side Restoration & Senior Support Project
• $2,000 for Twiggs Park Neighborhood Litter Clean Up
• $2,500 for Siding Repair
• $1,500 for Deloris Holmes Memorial Bench
• $2,335 for Falling Siding Repair
• $2,335 for Flower Bed Retaining Wall
• $2,500 for Evanston Community Fridges - CNE Fridger and Baby/Toddler Pantry

8th Ward

• $2,500 for Brummel Park Social Gathering Space
• $1,400 for Little Free Library/Resource Exchange at Brummel Park
• $2,500 for Public Green Space Crosswalk Beautification

9th Ward

• $2,500 for Reba Park Native Plant Garden
• $2,500 for Slow Down on Elmwood
• $2,500 for Native Plants on Reba Place!
• $1,225 for The Magic Garden

Learn more about the winning projects.

“These projects reflect what makes Evanston special: neighbors who care deeply about one another and take action to make their communities stronger. I’m grateful to the mini-grant recipients and to every resident who brought forward ideas rooted in pride, creativity, and a shared sense of responsibility for our neighborhoods,” said Mayor Biss. “We also thank the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University for their partnership in helping turn these community-driven ideas into reality.”

With support from the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University, the Love Your Block program brings city leaders and residents together to build stronger neighborhoods, one block at a time. Love Your Block grants fund resident-led neighborhood revitalization projects—from transforming vacant lots into community gardens to repairing playground equipment and removing trash from a public right-of-way—in communities across the United States. The program strengthens social cohesion among residents, increases civic participation, and builds stronger relationships within communities, while fostering greater trust in local government.

Residents interested in learning more about the Love Your Block program in Evanston or volunteering to support local projects can visit cityofevanston.org/loveyourblock.