Love Your Block

What Is Love Your Block?

Love Your Block is a two‑year civic engagement program that brings city leaders and residents together to strengthen neighborhoods “one block at a time.” From transforming vacant lots into community gardens to removing trash and debris from a public right-of-way, the program supports cities in engaging with their residents to design, develop, and deliver small-scale neighborhood improvement projects that make their communities and cities better places to live.

Established and supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Love Your Block builds on the successful legacy of Cities of Service, which has helped hundreds of mayors and municipalities engage residents as a leading voice in public problem-solving since its launch by New York City mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in 2009.

In addition to improving public spaces, a study by the Urban Institute found that cities participating in Love Your Block were able to strengthen social cohesion among residents, increase civic participation, and build stronger relationships with community members, leading to greater trust in local government.

Love Your Block is one of several programs that the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University supports to equip local governments with the tools to unlock the insights, talent, and energy of their residents.

Since its founding in 2009, Love Your Block has reached over 85,000 community members—creating nearly 800 art displays, cleaning over 550,000 square feet of graffiti, and removing nearly 7 million pounds of trash in cities nationwide. A total of 50 U.S. cities across 33 states have received support through the program.