U.S. Conference of Mayors, Wells Fargo launch grant program

$3 million CommunityWINS? grant program over three years to support neighborhood revitalization, economic development, and job creation in local municipalities

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The U.S. Conference of Mayors

Jan 22, 2015, 12:10 ET

SAN FRANCISCO and WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) and Wells Fargo today announced a new collaboration, the CommunityWINS℠ grant program, aimed at accelerating neighborhood revitalization, economic development, and job creation in municipalities across the country.

Unveiled to mayors today during the 83^rd annual USCM Winter Conference in Washington, D.C., CommunityWINS grant program will include a $3 million investment by the Wells Fargo Foundation over three years.

"This Wells Fargo grant program is a great example of how the private and public sectors can work together to bring real solutions to help address local economic challenges in cities," said Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran. "Wells Fargo and our members share a deep-rooted commitment to communities all across the country and we are thrilled that CommunityWINS will help to spur economic recovery in many cities."

Through a competitive application process, the USCM will determine eligibility and administer grant funds to eligible nonprofits in six cities that support neighborhood revitalization, economic development, and job creation initiatives.

"We are delighted to once again team-up with the U.S. Conference of Mayors with funding from the Wells Fargo Foundation and offer expertise through our Leading the Way Home®, LIFT and now CommunityWINS programs," said Mary Coffin, Head of Customer Excellence at Wells Fargo Home Lending. "Wells Fargo believes it is important to support our communities and nonprofits in their tireless efforts to help accelerate local economic recovery. Together, our collaboration strengthens the communities in which we live, work and grow."

USCM member cities can nominate up to three eligible nonprofit initiatives or programs that address one of the following categories:

• Neighborhood stabilization – projects designed to stimulate growth and stability while assisting in the removal of blight and the rebuilding of neighborhoods.

• Economic development – projects designed to promote business development.

• Job creation – projects designed to aid in local job creation or assist in job training.

Grant requirements, application details, application checklists, and the online application forms are available now at usmayors.org/communitywins and applications must be submitted by March 16, 2015.

The CommunityWINS grant program collaboration between the USCM and Wells Fargo follows a national alliance formed in 2011 to address foreclosure prevention, property disposition, homeownership promotion and community development. The three-year alliance focused on outreach and addressing housing challenges through strategies developed by Wells Fargo.

About USCM
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are nearly 1,400 such cities in the country today, and each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/usmayors, or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/usmayors.

About Wells Fargo (Twitter @WellsFargo)
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a nationwide, diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.7 trillion in assets. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance through more than 8,700 locations, 12,500 ATMs, and the internet (wellsfargo.com), and has offices in 36 countries to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 265,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 29 on Fortune's 2014 rankings of America's largest corporations. Wells Fargo's vision is to satisfy all our customers' financial needs and help them succeed financially. Wells Fargo perspectives are also available at Wells Fargo Blogs and Wells Fargo Stories.