The Community Foundation of Central Georgia announced the first round of recipients of the Downtown Challenge, a three-year, $3 million grant program funding community-driven ideas to transform Downtown Macon, also known as the city’s urban core that stretches from the central business district to surrounding historic neighborhoods.

The Downtown Challenge is administered by the Community Foundation of Central Georgia and was made possible by the Peyton Anderson Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation; each provided $1.5 million in support.

Over $3.4 million in Downtown Challenge grant applications were received by March 15, the inaugural deadline. Sixty-eight applications were reviewed and scored according to the funding priorities of the Macon Action Plan, a five-year strategic plan designed to improve Macon’s urban core and respond to four community needs and opportunities detailed in the plan:
 
-  Economic Development – Diversify the local economy to ensure that downtown is competitive and attractive for new business, support Macon’s institutions as economic anchors for growth, send a clear message that Macon is open for business, and support startups and attract job-creating businesses.

-  Experience – Program downtown’s social life, build the local audience, keep the urban core clean and safe, and transform Macon’s sidewalks and public spaces as the center stage for community life.

-  Living – Encourage more households to locate downtown, update regulations and codes to encourage investment, and strengthen surrounding neighborhoods to offer the best of both worlds (downtown and Intown living).

-  Connectivity – Cultivate and improve multimodal transportation options, enhance safety and manage downtown’s parking system in a comprehensive manner.

“The Community Foundation of Central Georgia is very pleased with the innovative and transformational ideas received in the inaugural round of the Downtown Challenge,” said Kathryn Dennis, president of the Community Foundation of Central Georgia. “This significant infusion of capital and leadership will jumpstart the implementation of the Macon Action Plan and these exciting projects will accelerate the positive momentum in Downtown Macon.”
 
The recipients were announced and celebrated at a reception on June 7 at the former Karsten-Denson building at 536 Third Street. The former hardware store was transformed into a “Pop-Up Speakeasy” for the event, a nod to one of the newly funded ideas.
 
The first recipients receiving funding from the Downtown Challenge are:

1) Historic Macon, $5,000: To host “Preservation Pop-up Speakeasies” in unexpected places, to draw attention to underutilized spaces and advocate for preservation and development of Macon’s historic building stock. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (A) of the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

2) Macon-Bibb County, Main Street Macon, $5,000: To enhance “Christmas on First Street,” an annual street fair held on First Street and Rosa Parks Square that features holiday events and small business celebrations. The idea meets a need in 2.3 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

3) Macon Area Habitat for Humanity, Inc., $6,000: To design two sets of plans for historically appropriate homes for Pleasant Hill and East Macon’s Main Street neighborhoods in order to improve affordable housing and infill for blight removal. The idea meets a need in 3.3 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Living” funding priority.

4) Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission, $6,785: To install 30 free-standing dog waste stations in downtown city parks and on Mulberry, Cherry, Poplar and Third Streets and Cotton Avenue. The idea meets a need in 2.1 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.
 
5) Georgia Chapter of American Society of Landscape Architects – Middle Section, $6,850: To host the Poplar Street Yard Charrette facilitated by the University of Georgia. Community members and design professionals will collaborate to create a report of possible improvements for Poplar Street Yard. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

6) Historic Macon Foundation, $7,000: To partner with Planning and Zoning and the Design Review Board and train staff and commissioners with “Smarter Commissioners = Better Communities,” a full-day of training with a nationally recognized program, CAMP. The idea meets a need in 3.2 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Living” funding priority.
 
7) The 11th Hour, $12,000: To write and host a local, live musical theatre production, in partnership with Rock Candy Tours and Theatre Macon, that traces the stories of Macon’s legendary music history and hopes to ignite a new folk life tradition, much like Colquitt County’s “Swamp Gravy.” The idea meets a need in 2.5 (C) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

8) NewTown Macon, $15,000: To purchase movable furniture to activate public spaces into the center stage for downtown community life. Furniture will be leased to local businesses and utilized in local parks. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

9) Macon-Bibb Urban Development Authority, $17,280: To plan, design and construct an entrance gate to the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail and parking lot at Clinton Street that will make the entrance more visible, incorporate information about the park, and allow the city to close off the park access at times of flooding. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (C) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.
 
10) Macon Arts Alliance, $18,000: To enhance the pedestrian experience with the “East to West Art Walk” that improves connectivity between Mill Hill and the Central Business District. Macon Arts Alliance will commission temporary sidewalk murals connected by temporary painted arrows and newly painted crosswalks. The idea meets a need in 4.2 (C) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Connectivity” funding priority.
 
11) Navicent Health, $25,000: To design a transportation plan for the hospital campus, including the proposed round-about at Daisy Park and the intersection of Spring, Pine and Forsyth Streets, that increases the campus’ growth and walkability. This is a challenge grant that requires the $25,000 in Downtown Challenge funds to be matched by Navicent’s own funds. The idea meets a need in 1.1 (B) of the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Economic Development” funding priority.
 
12) Macon-Bibb County, $25,000: To create a signage master plan for Downtown Macon that outlines appropriate designs for primary directional, pedestrian, destination markers, banners, informational kiosks and parking garage signs. This will also provide standard signage identifying local parking garages. The idea meets a need in 2.4 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Economic Development” funding priority.
 
13) NewTown Macon, $25,000: To create the “Downtown Venture Fund” which will provide funding to entrepreneurs who are either starting or expanding a business and may not have the assets that traditional funders require of a start-up business. The grant will fund two projects that will bring commerce to Downtown Macon. The idea meets a need in 1.3 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.
 
14) Historic Macon Foundation, $30,000: To survey, plan and purchase permits for the Spring Street to Rose Hill Cemetery connection on the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail. It will also allow for signage at Oak Ridge, the cemetery’s historically African American section. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (C) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

15) NewTown Macon, $30,000: To reach approval for a Community Improvement District that would allow downtown property owners to pay a fee based on the value of their property for services above and beyond that which the local government currently provides. Funds generated could be used for safety, streetscapes and sanitation throughout Downtown Macon. A Community Improvement District was identified as a required investment to implementing all strategies in the Macon Action Plan.

16) AnT Sculpture and Design, LLC, $35,000: To integrate public art, play and functional landscape by transforming Bernd Park (at Magnolia and Spring Streets) into the Bernd Plein Air Art Park that draws neighbors and creates a downtown destination. This will construct a custom, large-scale ceramic sculpture with a functional bridge, slide and swings. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

17) Macon-Bibb County Urban Development Authority, $62,500: To hire a landscape architect and civil engineer to design bike connections along Third Street from Riverside Drive to Poplar Street according to the Macon Action Plan framework. The idea meets a need in 4.4 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Connectivity” funding priority.

18) Macon-Bibb Urban Development Authority, $500: To design and construct a simple, light-weight, easy to maintain and re-locate storage structure that will contain sports equipment, such as footballs, soccer balls, Frisbees, etc., for anyone to utilize for pick-up games. The prototype locker will be installed in front of the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. The idea meets a need in 2.3 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.
 
19) Theatre Macon, $9,915: To enhance the alley next to Theatre Macon by adding café lights, iron planters, sign holders and other features that significantly improve and match other renovated downtown allies in esthetic appeal and pedestrian experience. The idea meets a need in 2.2 (A) of the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.
 
20) Friends of Macon Music, $10,000: To host piano and acoustic sets featuring locally known and new musicians playing sidewalks and parks. Funding will also be used for artistically painted pianos placed in public places that invite people to spontaneously play music. The idea meets a need in 2.3 (A) of the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

21) Bryan Nichols, $75,000: To transform Poplar Street with Christmas lights and music to create a regional holiday attraction in Downtown Macon. The idea meets a need in 2.3 (A) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Experience” funding priority.

22) Macon-Bibb Convention & Visitors Bureau, $88,170: To provide bike-share services in Downtown Macon through Macon Soul Cycles. This program will encourage visitors, employees and residents to use bicycles for visiting area businesses, exploring the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail or cycling for an outdoor experience. Renters that return their bike within two hours will not be charged a fee. The idea meets a need in 4.3 (B) of in the Macon Action Plan and falls under the “Connectivity” funding priority.

The three-year grant program will continue to fund creative, transformational projects for Macon’s downtown area—bounded by Interstate 75, Emery Highway, Seventh Street and Little Richard Penniman Boulevard. A broad-based, competitive grant program, the challenge will fund the best ideas – small and large – from individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and government entities who will lead the development and implementation of their projects. Individual applicants are encouraged to partner with a sponsoring organization.