Cultural Affairs Office

Press and Communications

July 12, 2016 -- The Mayor is calling for Houston’s best ideas to endorse for the national Our Town grant program.

The National Endowment for the Arts’ Our Town grant is interested in projects that bring arts and culture to impact community priorities such as public safety, health, blight and vacancy, environment, job creation, equity, local business development, civic participation, and/or community cohesion. Successful projects will improve the livability of communities, create opportunities for all and empower local residents.

“I know the depth of talent and creativity we have in this city,” said The Mayor. “Houston is one of the best places in the world for arts and culture, and you won’t find a better place to ignite the power of the arts across sectors, than right here in Houston.”

The Our Town grant program supports creative placemaking projects that help to transform communities into lively, beautiful, and resilient places with the arts at their core. Our Town requires partnerships between arts organizations and government, other nonprofit organizations, and private entities to achieve livability goals for communities. This grant provides an opportunity to embrace the expanding role culture plays in our community.

The National Endowment for the Arts limits the number of Our Town grant applicants per city and requires a letter of endorsement from The Mayor. Applications that respond to the City’s Arts and Cultural Plan will be most competitive for an endorsement.

In order to be considered for endorsement, applicants should submit their complete Our Town applications no later than August 8, 2016 to Cultural.Affairs@houstontx.gov. Successful applicants will receive endorsement notification by September 1, 2016.

For more about the Arts and Cultural Plan visit: https://www.houstontx.gov/culturalaffairs/artsandculturalplan.html.
 For more about the Our Town grant program visit: https://www.arts.gov/grants.

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