City of Birmingham / Create Birmingham — Community Arts Grant Program (projects in 2027)

Four grants of $10,000 each go to arts collaborations that address a problem facing Birmingham, Alabama. Music qualifies — concerts, festivals, workshops, performances — but the framing matters: the panel is looking for the arts put to work on an issue such as public health or safety, education, civic engagement, racial or restorative justice, or social and legal services, taking place in one of the city's listed neighbourhoods and open to the general public.

Every application needs two lead partners: an artist or arts organisation, and a community organisation from a non-arts sector. The primary partner must hold nonprofit status and have a City of Birmingham address. Small and mid-sized arts organisations and individual artists get priority consideration. No organisation or individual may be a lead partner on more than one application.

Matching funds are required at 1:2 — $5,000 alongside the $10,000 award, so a total project budget of at least $15,000. The match can be cash, in-kind or a combination.

Getting in is a two-stage process, and the first stage closes well before the headline date: an eligibility check requiring a current city business license, IRS 501(c)(3) letter, Form 990, a third-party financial statement or audit, and a board list. Only applicants cleared at that stage receive the application link.

A nine-person panel appointed by City Council, one from each district, scores applications against a published rubric. Funded activity runs through 2027.