BEND, OR -- Bend 2030 has received a large grant to continue civic discussions about the future of the area. The group, along with the local business and development organization Opportunity Knocks, was just awarded $100,000 from the Meyer Memorial Trust. "We received this grant for a two-year program called the Civic Equity Project. It's about engaging organizations across the community in decision-making, in Bend," says Bend 2030 Director Erin Foote Morgan. 

They plan to kick-off the project in April. Foote Morgan tells KBND News, "It's really about working one-on-one with organizations to develop their own internal strengths and helping them understand what their members need out of policy decisions in Bend, around housing and transportation; and offering platforms for those groups to become engaged in these civic dialogs."

Bend 2030 wants to work with diverse groups across the city to hold forums involving under-represented populations, like veterans and seniors. "We'll be out in the community recruiting organizations to become part of this two-year program. So, if your group represents people in Bend and you feel like you need to learn better how to be stronger internally so that you can advocate for your members externally, we want you in this program." Foote Morgan says future forums will address such issues as housing and transportation.