Baltimore gets Bloomberg funding to form innovation team

Baltimore is getting more help from Bloomberg Philanthropies for civic innovation.
The city will receive up to $500,000 for three years to form an innovation team within City Hall. The Bloomberg Philanthropies “i-team” program announced expansion to seven new cities, which will bring it to a total of 20 cities.
“Mayors must always be looking for new ways to improve the critical services that people depend on,” Michael Bloomberg said in a statement. “Our Innovation Teams program helps mayors do that by giving city governments around the world the capacity to make their innovative ideas reality.”
The team will focus on addressing a specific challenge. Along with funding, Bloomberg Philanthropies will provide technical assistance. The program also sets up a network for cities to share ideas. The team’s focus wasn’t immediately announced, but teams must be up and running by the spring.
Examples from other cities include a system in Syracuse, N.Y., that identifies breaks in water pipes, or a Mobile, Ala., project that uses Instagram to geo-locate blighted properties.
Baltimore also received support from Bloomberg Philanthropies through the What Works Cities program, which helps cities improve use of data. Michael Bloomberg, a famous Johns Hopkins alum, is known to have a soft spot for his former haunts.