Corridors of Opportunity - Business Opportunity Hub

Description

The City of Charlotte is pleased to accept proposals for the Corridors of Opportunity Business Opportunity Hub Grant. The city will award up to $2.76 million in grant funds to eligible nonprofit organizations or higher education institutions that are currently providing workforce and/or small business support and looking to expand programs to create access to resources within the Corridors of Opportunity.

Funds may be used for the expansion of programs, services and physical space within one of the Corridors of Opportunity. Physical space should serve as a place to connect entrepreneurs and residents to resources and opportunities.

The minimum grant awarded is $200,000 per organization. Awardees will be selected in September, 2023. Funds must be expended by December 31st, 2026.

Note: Applicants planning to serve the West Boulevard Corridor please consider the following:

As part of this grant opportunity, the city is seeking an organization to implement the City of Charlotte Smart Cities Digital Access Learning Lab Program within the Wingate Community Center. The Wingate Community Center is a city-owned building located in the West Boulevard Corridor at 2701 Mayfair Avenue.

The Wingate Learning Lab Program would meet one or more of the following Wingate neighborhood goals:

• Afterschool programming, computer or tech-related
• Tutoring programs
• Computer classes
• Senior programming related to digital literacy or jobs
• Workforce development/job placement services
• Telehealth services or workstations
• Financial literacy services, i.e., online banking training or other trainings

Additional support is available for implementing the Wingate Learning Lab project idea located in the West Boulevard Corridor. Organizations may request a minimum of $302,000 to cover building renovation and upfit, new security system, FF&E, and broadband internet provided by Spectrum.

• The city-owned property will be renovated to modern ADA standards by the General Services department
• In addition to the $302,000 allocated for building renovations, additional funds may be requested by organizations planning to incorporate the Wingate Community Center as part of their project proposal
• The Wingate neighborhood association must be able to co-tenant
• This is an optional opportunity and not required by grant applicants looking to serve the West Boulevard Corridor

Applicants planning to serve the West Boulevard Corridor may choose one of two options:

Option A: Implement the Wingate Learning Lab program

Option B: Implement an Opportunity Hub program located somewhere else on the West Blvd corridor (the Wingate Learning Lab additional funding would not be available for this option)

Proposal Requirements

You will be asked to submit the following information to help us better understand your proposed project/program/service:

• Detailed scope of work describing how the project/program/service will create access to workforce opportunities for Charlotte residents within one of the Corridors of Opportunity
• Itemized budget Specific timeline for use of funds
• Detailed performance measures and outcomes (i.e. # of businesses served, #residents served, # of jobs created)

Eligibility

To be eligible for the program the applicant must be a non-profit organization/501(c)3, academic organization, or Chamber of Commerce/501(c)6 whose main purpose is to provide workforce development resources, programs and services.

For more details on the Eligibility Requirements (PDF, 990KB) , please see our FAQs (PDF, 1013KB) .

You will be asked to provide/describe the following: Organization description

• Must be located within Mecklenburg County (Headquarters or Local Office) and either 1) planning to expand programs to serve one of the Corridors of Opportunity OR 2) expand current services within a Corridor of Opportunity (organizations can apply to serve two adjacent corridors in close proximity)

• Must provide documentation that the organization has served the Charlotte community for at least two years (i.e. annual reports or similar supporting documents) and provided workforce programming for at least two years

• Organization mission/vision statement

• Documents supporting organization designation 501(c)3 letter 501(c)6 letter

• Annual Audit (with two-year comparative financials), if applicable

• Federal Tax Returns for the previous two years

Application Process

The application will be open June 26, 2023 at 12 p.m. until August 4, 2023 at 5 p.m. Grants will be awarded in September, 2023.

Contact details

Submit an Application

Q&A Sessions

Related Information

• Eligibility Requirements (PDF, 990KB)
• FAQs (PDF, 1013KB)