Community organizations, schools, and parks in nine cities and towns across the country are using $1 million in new grants from LISC and The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation to improve sports facilities for youth in under-resourced neighborhoods. The grants are from the third funding round of the Game On-Community Places to Play Initiative.
Access to safe, well-maintained spaces for play, exercise, and community gathering is essential for healthy, thriving neighborhoods. Yet, in U.S. cities over 28 million children—more than a third—lack access to a safe park within a 10-minute walk. High-income areas, on average, have 66 more acres of parkland than low-income communities.
LISC works closely with our partners to ensure athletic spaces are available in the communities that need them the most. Game On-Community Places to Play, an initiative of LISC and The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation, helps local organizations transform underused athletic spaces into high-quality, welcoming environments available for everyone without barriers to participation. Game On offers grants ranging from $50,000 to $100,000 to support outdoor and indoor facilities for organized youth sports, including but not limited to basketball, baseball, golf, softball, soccer, football, tennis, lacrosse, and volleyball.
Through three funding rounds, the Game On initiative has deployed nearly $4 million to build or renovate 46 sports facilities in 32 cities across the United States. Projects supported during the third funding round include:
- Atlanta Beltline Partnership (Atlanta, GA): Create a state-of-the-art Bike Park at Shirley Clarke Franklin Park that includes a pump track, a bicycle playground, a series of jump lines, and a skill course.
- Boston Public Housing Corporation (Boston, MA): Renovate a basketball court at the Franklin Field public housing development in the Dorchester neighborhood.
- The Knothole Foundation, Inc. (Charlotte, NC): Refurbish an artificial turf field for baseball and softball at The Knothole Foundation in West Charlotte.
- YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago (Chicago, IL): Update the indoor soccer field at its Rauner Family YMCA.
- MetroSquash (Chicago, IL): Revitalize the squash and fitness facilities at the Hussain MetroSquash Center, a 21,000-square-foot facility.
- SpringSpirit (Houston, TX): Replace the turf field at the Pitner Campus field to support baseball, softball, and soccer for local youth and their families.
- Living Advantage, Inc. (Los Angeles, CA): Expand the Living Advantage Youth Center in the Crenshaw Corridor by creating a 2,000 square-foot youth sports and wellness space.
- Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade Inc. (Miami, FL): Renovate the indoor sports area at its Kendall Club. The renovation includes replacing bleachers, installing energy efficient lighting, resurfacing the athletic flooring and adding a new AC unit.
- Overtown Youth Center, Inc. (Miami, FL): Renovate and expand its indoor gym facility. The project includes resurfacing the gym floor, installing multi-sport court markings, upgrading lighting and ventilation, and enhancing safety features.
- City Parks Foundation (New York, NY): Provide capital equipment and facility safety needs for three junior golf facilities (Brooklyn Junior Golf Center, Staten Island Junior Golf Annex and Queens Junior Golf Annex).
- Penn Hills School District (Pittsburgh, PA): Resurface the Penn Hills High School track to create a durable, resilient, and regulation 400-meter track for year-round use.
The Neighborhood Academy (Pittsburgh, PA): Expand its Gymnasium and Events Center. The project includes installing new athletic flooring and purchasing multi-sport equipment for basketball, volleyball, wrestling, cheerleading, and indoor soccer.
“This grant will have a profound impact on our community and local schools by providing our youth with a safe, modern, and fully equipped space for physical activity, teamwork, and healthy development,” said Madeline Padilla, Manager of Grants of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade. “With this improved space, students and community members will have more opportunities to stay active, build confidence, develop leadership skills, and engage in positive, structured activities. It will also serve as a hub for school partnerships, community events, and programs that strengthen connections between families, schools, and our Club, fostering a healthier, more connected, and resilient community.”
In North Carolina, the youth organization The Knothole Foundation sees the potential to nurture their entire community by investing in girls, who are often overlooked in sports. “Grant funding will permit Knothole to make a signature statement about ‘leveling the playing field’ in West Charlotte and will facilitate sustainable improvement to the overall health and development of girls in underserved communities through leadership training and capacity building,” said Al Daspin, Head of Fund Development at The Knothole Foundation. “The initiative is designed to eliminate barriers to participation by offering girls equal access to facilities, equipment, and mentors; enhance college/career pathways through collaborative community efforts; and ultimately effect upward mobility to change the community narrative.”
LISC and The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation will continue to track progress of the projects supported by Game On, sharing data and insights on how creating safe spaces for play and exercise can help foster healthier communities.