Keep Cincinnati Beautiful

About Keep Cincinnati Beautiful

Keep Cincinnati Beautiful Inc centers its grantmaking on neighborhood safety and environmental change in Cincinnati’s 52 neighborhoods, with Safe & Clean grants serving as the clearest expression of that approach. Recent awards show a strong emphasis on projects that use environmental design to reduce blight, build community ownership, and support youth-led work. The largest recent grant went to Lower Price Hill Neighborhood Alliance of Businesses for Safe & Clean work, alongside other neighborhood-based awards to organizations such as Robert O'neal Multicultural Arts Center and Santa Maria Community Services Inc. The foundation’s public profile also points to a practical, project-specific style of funding. Its stated programs include greenspace and pocket parks, tree planting and urban canopy, environmental education, youth workforce development, community cleanups and litter removal, public art and murals, and volunteer engagement. That mix suggests an organization funding direct service delivery and neighborhood-level interventions rather than broad, unrestricted support. Its work is tied to community beautification, urban sanitation, and public space maintenance, with grants landing largely with local community groups and civic organizations across Cincinnati.

What Keep Cincinnati Beautiful Funds

Safe & Clean grants are the foundation’s most visible neighborhood-safety tool. In 2025, it gave $49,650 to Lower Price Hill Neighborhood Alliance of Businesses and $45,285 to Robert O'neal Multicultural Arts Center, both for Safe & Clean work tied to community beautification and safety. Youth and workforce development is another defined area. The active RootS to Boots program prepares young adults for careers in horticulture, landscaping, and greenspace management through hands-on field experience and a stipend structure based on attendance and completion of objectives. Greenspace creation appears in the Spaces to Places Service Grant, a multi-year service grant that helps community groups transform vacant lots, pocket parks, and edible gardens into maintained greenspaces. The program description says KCB contributes design, project management, and materials support, which shows a hands-on role beyond simple cash grants. Environmental education, tree planting, litter removal, and public art also sit within the foundation’s stated portfolio.

How Keep Cincinnati Beautiful Gives