2023 Grant Recipient
YouthBuild Louisville
AWARD: $100,000
FOCUS AREA: ENVIRONMENTAL, PRESERVATION OR RECREATION
PROJECT: Smoketown Family Center
PROJECT IMPACT: The grant will go to support the construction of the Smoketown Community Center, an important neighborhood amenity that will serve youth and young adults in Smoketown and the surrounding area.
Organization Statement: YouthBuild Louisville (YBL) is an education, job training, and leadership program that provides low-income young adults, ages 18-24, opportunities to realize their potential as active community leaders and educated workforce for Louisville.
Major Recent Successes:
- In 2022, with a lead gift from Impact 100, opened Smoketown’s only laundromat.
- In fall 2023, will open a dormitory for 3-6 homeless youth.
How this funding will impact this organization:
YouthBuild requests a $100,000 capital request to support the construction of the Smoketown Community Center, an important neighborhood amenity that will serve youth and young adults in Smoketown and the surrounding area. Smoketown is Louisville’s first and oldest historically Blackneighborhood, founded by former slaves after the Civil War. Despite its historical importance, this neighborhood has fallen into distress because of long-term disinvestment. Infrastructure is lacking, making it an Opportunity Zone. Smoketown is a food desert, with no current grocery stores and limited access to fresh food. In 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) - Louisville Division identified Smoketown as one of three areas in the city that are hotspots for neighborhood-based gangs. It is for these reasons that YouthBuild has stepped forward to create a safe zone for youth and adults.
The Smoketown Community Center will provide amenities to the neighborhood, such as youth and family programming, Violence Interrupter services, community flex meeting and event space and a small business incubator. The Smoketown Community Center is important for rebuilding the social networks broken when Sheppard Square was demolished and redesigned without a dedicated community center.
This space also meets the priorities of the community including place-based jobs development and activities for youth. Specific objectives include: 1) providing after-school and summer programming for 150 Smoketown youth; and 2) providing business incubator services to 50 youth or young adults within one year of opening the Smoketown Community Center.
Wish List: