Bernalillo County reopens grant program geared toward neighborhood beautification

From pollinator gardens to Route 66 murals, neighborhood associations have turned grants from a Bernalillo County program into community hubs. Now, the program is back for another year.

Since 2010, neighborhood associations have used money doled out as part of the Bernalillo County Neighborhood Grant Program to beautify the county and build community, said Neighborhood Coordinator Megan Holcomb.

“We work really closely with them, but we want to kind of give them another outlet to, you know, organize projects and events in their neighborhood,” Holcomb said.

The program, which relies on money from the county’s general fund, is again accepting applicants for fiscal year 2026. Eligible projects receive grants of $7,500 for bigger projects and $2,500 for smaller ones. According to the county’s website, possible projects include workshops, trainings, neighborhood art initiatives, crime prevention projects or anything that brings the community together. The application deadline ends June 11.

Interested groups can visit the county’s Planning and Development Services website, bernco.gov/planning, or contact the department at neighborhoodgrants@bernco.gov.

Ken Sears, president of the ABQCore Neighborhood Association, said the money is crucial for groups like his.

“Neighborhood associations typically aren’t well funded,” Sears said, adding that donations comprise the bulk of his group’s financial resources.

Sears said grants like this allow the association to focus on projects that build community both in the short term and the long term. That’s precisely what happened last year when ABQCore was awarded a grant, which they used for a mural project in the Downtown neighborhood in anticipation of the Route 66 Centennial.

Sears said his community came together to plan the mural, and even after it was finished, the community still used the space for regular gatherings.

One hurdle Holcomb noted is that eligible recipients must have a tax identification number or be registered as a nonprofit. Holcomb said neighborhood associations can still get the grants without that, but they’d have to go through a fiscal sponsor.

Last year, the county gave out grants to 16 neighborhood associations.

“I think it’s just a really good way to provide an opportunity for us to meet our neighbors and build that community and that support system that we all kind of look for,” Holcomb said.