The SNG Small Grant program funds community-proposed initiatives that support the neighborhood. Since 2023, the Small Grant program has included beautification efforts, street art, festivals, educational events, restorative justice, as well as BIPOC and renter resident engagement.
Through this program, SNG provides technical support to community-lead initiatives, including project development, communications, fiscal agency, and funding support.
If you have questions on the Seward Small Grant Program or want more information, send an email to admin@sng.org.
2024 Small Grants
In 2024, SNG awarded 10 grants totaling $20,000 to community-led initiatives that benefit the Seward Neighborhood. Some projects are still ongoing, and details will be provided when they are completed.
36th Ave ART
36th ART is a volunteer group of neighborhood residents working to address safety, accessibility, aesthetics and interpretive wayfinding along 36th Avenue South from East Lake Street to 25th Street East. In September, 36th ART commissioned the talented artist and Indigenous culture bearer Thomasina TopBear and her BIPOC mural-painting team City Mischief Murals to create a mural that turned the entire 36th Avenue bridge into a work of art during a 48-hour paint-a-thon followed by a community celebration of National Hispanic Heritage month organized by Indigenous Roots in collaboration with the Hiawatha Collegiate High School.
Greenway Glow Arts festival Concert
Seward Longfellow Restorative Justice
24xx-33rd Ave Beautification
Community Canvas Paint on the Street
BIPOC Shared Space
The BIPOC Shared Space aims to unite BIPOC individuals in the Seward and Longfellow neighborhoods, but is open to all BIPOC and allies. The Shared Space at the Ivy Arts Building held four sessions that included a workshop or activity that promoted healing, growing, and connection through creativity. The space is intentional in bringing together small groups of people to allow deep connections and partnerships while provided a space where BIPOC are centered and celebrated. The four workshops, led by BIPOC creatives and healers, included arts and crafts, improv comedy, guided meditation and transformative healing with one session each month from August to November.
Twin Cities Makers Fest
Seward Commons Socials
Little Free Libraries
Graybar Prairie
2023 Seward Small Grants
In 202, SNG awarded X grants totaling $20,000 to community-led initiatives that benefit the Seward Neighborhood. Find information on those projects below.
Pinwheel Arts
SNG helped fund the construction of 13 pairs of stilts in 7 different sizes, which is enough to supply a class of 9-10 kids, or 6 teens. These will be used by hundreds of people over the next decade or so. Pinwheel Arts taught two sessions at Merwyn Park – one for ages 9-14, one for teens and middle schoolers.
Soup for You!
With support from SNG, Soup for You! was able to purchase new equipment and supplies to keep them serving hot meals to the South Minneapolis Community.
MPLS Art
The Seward Neighborhood is known for its art scene. MPLS Art, an online platform covering exhibitions, writing, resources, and more from the Twin Cities visual arts scene, wrote a series of articles featuring Seward artists, galleries and spaces that contribute to the vitality of our neighborhood.
36th Ave ART
Seward Neighborhood Group funded 36th ART (Avenue Revitalization & Transformation), a resident-led coalition of Seward and Longfellow community stakeholders in a partnership with Sprayfinger Inc., and Hiawatha Collegiate High School (HCHS) to transform the railroad/Greenway bridge over 36th Avenue South, with the production of two large 80-foot wall murals.
Poetry Under the Pines
Seward neighbors hosted two community conversations through the medium of poetry, exploring works by Ada Limón, who centers nature and connection in her work, while sipping beverages under the white pine in a Seward yard.
Rallying in Solidarity for Equity (RISE)
RISE was a neighborhood event in Brackett Park designed to support our unhoused community members and provide health, healing, and resources to our community members. This included providing free meals, health resources and vaccines, yoga, supply kits, HIV testing and more.
Criteria & Eligibility
The Seward Small Grant Program Review Committee will use the following criteria to judge applications (and may devise a scoring/rating system to use with these criteria):
- Feasibility. How doable is the project? Does the scope of the project fit the budget? Will the project require any permissions (e.g. from property owners or government agencies) that might significantly slow down the project?
- Capacity. What is the capability of the applicant(s) to successfully complete the project? Do the applicants have the required skills and experience – or have they identified contractors with the necessary skills?
- Creativity. How imaginative or original is the project? Will the project inspire engagement?
- Alignment. Does the project fit with SNG’s current mission statement? What specific efforts are being made to make this project accessible and inclusive for commonly marginalized people? (For example people with disabilities, BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, renters, East Africans, etc.).
SNG Mission Statement: SNG is an aspirational organization. We are committed to making our neighborhood more vital, equitable, livable, and sustainable – by building relationships, by engaging all community members, by promoting equitable and accessible development of the built environment, and by acting as stewards of our natural environment.