WELLS FARGO: Wells Fargo Donates $200,000 for Des Moines Neighborhood Revitalization

Wells Fargo issued the following announcement on Dec. 12.

Des Moines NeighborhoodLIFT® program awards grant for 6th Avenue Corridor Streetscape Project and will create 250 homeowners in Polk County.

DES MOINES — Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) today announced a $200,000 NeighborhoodLIFT® local initiative grant for the nonprofit 6th Avenue Corridor Main Street Program. The Wells Fargo grant supports the 6th Avenue Corridor Streetscape Project, a large-scale neighborhood revitalization initiative focused on 6th Avenue between Hickman Road south to Interstate 235. Construction on Phase I of the streetscape project is scheduled to begin March 1, 2019.

“We are committed to making our communities a better place to live while promoting economic development for citizens and communities,” said Wells Fargo Region Bank President Marta Codina. “Our NeighborhoodLIFT program has had a tremendous impact in Polk County in this regard, and the 6th Avenue Corridor project is an ideal place for us to put these additional grant dollars to use to help promote important economic development in this area of the city.”

The Wells Fargo grant is intended to support neighborhood revitalization efforts through the Wells Fargo NeighborhoodLIFT® program funded by the Wells Fargo Foundation.

6th Avenue Corridor planned streetscape enhancements include a lane reduction to calm traffic, widened sidewalks, a multi-modal path to accommodate bicyclists and bioretention cells to filter stormwater. Street trees, dedicated parking, bus shelters, benches, public art and new lighting will be added. The project focuses on transformative physical improvements that will help area small businesses thrive, allow residents to enjoy a safe and healthy corridor environment, and attract visitors to the district. Once complete, this will be the longest and most environmentally sustainable streetscape project in central Iowa.

“Wells Fargo has been a valued partner in efforts to revitalize 6th Avenue since our organization’s founding,” said Breann Bye, executive director of the 6th Avenue Corridor Main Street Program. “We’re incredibly grateful for this level of investment in a catalytic project that will stabilize small businesses, encourage entrepreneurship and economic development, positively impact the daily lives of our area residents and create a vibrant physical environment that will attract visitors. This project is decades in the making. Through generous contributions from Wells Fargo and others, it’s finally becoming a reality.”

NeighborhoodLIFT program to create about 250 homeowners in Polk County

The Des Moines, Polk County NeighborhoodLIFT program local initiative grant is part of a $4.7 million commitment by Wells Fargo to boost local homeownership and revitalize neighborhoods. The Des Moines NeighborhoodLIFT program has assisted 85 homeowners thus far by offering homebuyer education plus down payment assistance grants, and another 165 homebuyers are in the process of purchasing a home through the program. The 2018 Des Moines NeighborhoodLIFT program is a collaboration with NeighborWorks® America and its network member Neighborhood Community Finance Corporation of Des Moines. Limited funds may be available for interested homebuyers who have a contract in place to purchase a home and meet program eligibility requirements.

Since February 2012, LIFT programs have helped created more than 19,300 homeowners nationwide through 66 launch events. A video about the NeighborhoodLIFT program is posted on Wells Fargo Stories.

Original source can be found here.