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Chicago Neighborhood Opportunity Fund
City of Chicago
ABOUT THE GRANT
The Chicago Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF) provides small business and cultural projects located along commercial corridors on Chicago's West, Southwest, and South Sides with capital development grants of up to $250,000 to fund permanent capital improvements. Administered by the City of Chicago's Department of Planning and Development (DPD), the program reimburses up to 75 percent of eligible project expenses. The fund is uniquely resourced through fees paid by downtown construction projects via the DPD's Neighborhood Opportunity Bonus program, effectively channeling downtown development activity into direct reinvestment in historically under-invested neighborhoods. Applicants may also qualify for additional funding for Technical Assistance to support project design and delivery.
Eligible project types include commercial projects (such as office and retail uses), cultural projects (museums, theaters, and performance venues), nonprofit projects with an on-site commercial component, and commercial components of industrial uses. Eligible expenses include new construction, storefront buildouts, facade repair and window or door replacement, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC work, roof repairs, acquisition costs (as part of a larger construction or renovation project), and soft costs such as design and technical assistance. NOF does not award grants for the construction or rehabilitation of residential uses, manufacturing uses, industrial uses, or places of worship that do not identify commercial as the primary use of a project.
To qualify, projects must be located on an eligible or priority corridor within Chicago's West, Southwest, or South Side commercial areas. Applicants can confirm whether their property qualifies by contacting the NOF program directly. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis through the City of Chicago's Submittable online portal and are evaluated quarterly. Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to attend a grant information session before submitting materials to better understand eligibility, application requirements, and the review process. Grants exceeding $250,000 are available through DPD's separate Community Development Grant (CDG) program, which offers Medium ($300,001 to $5,000,000) and Large ($5,000,000 and above) grant tiers for more significant commercial, cultural, and mixed-use development projects.
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NOTES
Chicago actually runs two similar small-grant programs for commercial and cultural projects, and the primary difference is neighborhood focus rather than project size. The Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (this one) is specifically targeted at commercial corridors on the West, Southwest, and South Sides of the city, and is funded through fees paid by downtown construction projects. The Community Development Grant - Small program (CDG-S) offers a similar grant of up to $250,000 for projects located anywhere within the City of Chicago, and is funded through the city's Housing and Economic Development bond. If your project is on an eligible NOF corridor, it may be worth exploring both programs to see which is a better fit; if your project falls outside those corridors, CDG-S is likely the right path.
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