The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods announced that its next cycle of the Small and Simple Projects Fund will have a single focus on emergency preparedness.

This fall, Department of Neighborhoods is partnering with the Office of Emergency Management to offer a funding opportunity which invests city resources to help community members connect, organize, and plan for emergency situations with their neighbors. The recent national and international disasters are vivid reminders that all need to be prepared.

Previously, the Small and Simple Projects Fund provided awards up to $20,000 for any idea that builds a stronger and healthier community, be it physical projects or educational, cultural, and relationship-strengthening activities. Projects like the Shilshole Gateway and Bringing the Ring Back to Ballard benefitted from this fund.

This fall no applications outside of the new emergency preparedness focus will be accepted for the last cycle of the 2011 Small and Simple Projects Fund. The exception is for existing capital projects funded by the Neighborhood Matching Fund (NMF) that are ready for their next phase of implementation; these projects will be invited to apply by their NMF project manager.

Once the new focus is finalized later this fall, information on project types, funding amounts, and the application process will be available at www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf/smallandsimple.htm.

The deadlines for the 2012 cycles of the Small and Simple Projects Fund will be announced in November.