Community Support Mini Grants

The Community Support Mini Grants program, offered by the City & County of Denver, empowers residents and micro businesses to initiate community-driven projects aimed at enhancing neighborhood connectivity and addressing local needs. Grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 are available to eligible nonprofits and small businesses operating within designated neighborhoods. This initiative encourages projects that foster community building, increase economic mobility, and expand organizational capacity, thereby strengthening the fabric of Denver's diverse communities.

The Community Support Mini Grant Program provides residents and micro businesses with an opportunity to lead the change they want to see in their communities. By supporting community-driven projects, this program aims to create a stronger and more connected neighborhood, addressing community needs.
Denver Economic Development & Opportunity’s division of Neighborhood Equity & Stabilization (NEST), in partnership with the Denver Foundation, is offering mini grants ranging from $1,000-$10,000 to support the meaningful and necessary work of nonprofit organizations, community groups, and local small businesses with less than $500,000 in revenue, in Denver's NEST neighborhoods.
Funding is available for small, community-driven projects designed to strengthen community, create a stronger and more connected neighborhood, and address community needs.
The Community Support Mini Grants program seeks to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and performance of local small businesses with less than $500,000 in revenue, nonprofits and community groups currently active in the NEST priority neighborhoods of: Athmar Park, Barnum, Barnum West, Clayton, College View, East Colfax, Elyria Swansea, Globeville, Kennedy, Lincoln Park, Mar Lee, Montbello, Ruby Hill, Sun Valley, Valverde, Villa Park, Westwood, and Windsor.
The Community Support Mini Grants program prioritizes projects and/or activities that will create a stronger and more connected neighborhood, address community needs, and/or strengthen navigation to service delivery, including:

• Community Building & Organizing

Encouraging broad participation in a community to build trust, develop support networks, and foster neighborhood development. It also applies to projects designed to bring community members together around shared goals, improve communication, and enhance quality of life for all.
Increasing Economic Mobility
Expanding opportunities for communities over multiple generations by improving access to education, health, housing, and workforce development that will foster greater economic mobility and access to wealth and income.
Expanding Group Capacity
This priority area encourages capacity-building that helps strengthen a group’s service and responsiveness to their community. This could include, but is not limited to:

• Board and leadership development
• Strategic and operational planning
• Marketing and communications
• Development of worker-owned cooperatives

Eligibility

501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, or
Applicants with a 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor (required for community groups and local small businesses with less than $500,000 in revenue; documentation must be provided).
Eligible projects must take place within the program's priority neighborhoods. The priority neighborhoods include: Athmar Park, Barnum, Barnum West, Clayton, College View, East Colfax, Elyria Swansea, Globeville, Kennedy, Lincoln Park, Mar Lee, Montbello, Ruby Hill, Sun Valley, Valverde, Villa Park, Westwood, and Windsor.Formal or informal group(s) residing and/or doing work within the program's priority neighborhoods
Organizations or groups applying outside of priority neighborhoods must partner with existing groups in the community and demonstrate a strong collaboration
Informal groups must have at least three unrelated leaders who live in the City and County of Denver and who will be responsible for this project/campaignLocal small businesses applying for the grant must operate within the program's priority neighborhoods and have an annual revenue of no more than $500,000

Ineligibility

Stand-alone equipment purchases such as cameras, electronics (including computers), air conditioners, copiers, office equipment, televisions, locks, etc. are not eligible