Since its start five years ago, the city of Bowling Green’s Neighborhood Improvements Program has produced notable improvements in areas across the city.

The program uses a mix of federal Community Block Development Grant and city funds to do targeted improvements in one area – typically about $1.5 million over a two-year span.

What makes the program especially successful is that the projects funded in each area are based on that area’s specific needs.

The city surveys local residents and stakeholders and also gets feedback from city staff to come up with a list of projects to be funded for the chosen area.

“There is real value in being able to walk through a neighborhood and be able to move from idea to construction very rapidly,” said city Neighborhood and Community Services Director Brent Childers.

Funded projects include things like new sidewalks, park improvements, street fixtures, home improvement grants and efforts toward producing more affordable housing.

A notable example of the NIP’s targeted impact is the number of families seen utilizing the new sidewalks linking the areas around Lampkin and Pedigo parks to shopping and other locations.

“These connections didn’t previously exist,” Childers said.

In another area, the city and stakeholders identified a need for more affordable housing. That led to a $500,000 grant to Habitat for Humanity of Bowling Green-Warren County for infrastructure needed to build about 20 new homes in the Durbin Estates neighborhood.

Previous NIP areas were around Reservoir Hill, the city portion of Census Block 112 between Old Morgantown and Old Barren River roads and Normalview Drive to the city limits and a parcel of city land between University Boulevard and Morgantown and Old Morgantown roads.

Now, a fourth Bowling Green area – from the Barren River southwest toward downtown – is slated to be the next beneficiary of the NIP.

Planning for what projects will take place there is now underway.

Bowling Green City Manager Jeff Meisel said the Neighborhood Improvements Program has helped revitalize the city’s neighborhoods, setting them up for stability and further investments.

Neighborhoods are truly the heart of any city, and we commend Bowling Green officials for launching and funding this vital effort.

These targeted improvements will have long-lasting impacts on the vitality and strength of the entire city.