Baltimore orgs get Under Armour–supported grants to turn vacant lots into rec spaces

The RePlay Initiative aims to turn vacant lots into active spaces.
The backers of the effort, including ESPN, Under Armour and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, on Friday announced new grants to organizations across three cities for efforts to create recreational areas.

12 vacant areas in LA, Philly and Baltimore are getting a RePlay. Thanks to a partnership between LISC, @espn and @UnderArmour, they'll soon be sports fields, running trails, bike tracks and playgrounds. https://t.co/dkXz1yc95j … pic.twitter.com/mNk6x3Ws5a

— Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) (@LISC_HQ) September 6, 2018

Baltimore community organizations were among the recipients of the funding. The organizations include:

• Telesis Baltimore Corporation, to create a recreation space on two vacant lots adjacent to the Greenmount Recreation Center, with a rock climbing wall, play lawn and chess boards. ($75,000)
• City Neighbors Charter School, which will transform a vacant house into a playground and community park. “The Malone Children Memorial Playground will be dedicated to the memory of six children, two who were students at the school, who died in a fire,” a release states. ($75,000)
• Parks and People Foundation, to refurbish Gateway Park into a youth recreation space. The effort received a $10,000 grant for design and development.
• Reservoir Hill Improvement Council, to develop an open space and recreation plan for Reservoir Hill and Penn North, including a trail. The effort received a $10,000 planning grant.

Organizations in Los Angeles in Philly also received grants. The awards announced Friday totaled $330,000.
“Restoring vacant areas into safe, recreational sports and play spaces not only give youth a place to exercise and learn sports, they are also places that bring residents together and become a source of pride for the neighborhood,” LISC President Maurice A. Jones said in a statement.