For 50 years, we have been working to improve New York City.
In the mid-1970s, New York City teetered on the edge of bankruptcy. Entire city agencies were gutted. School programs were cut, hospital beds disappeared, and public services vanished almost overnight. Trash piled up on sidewalks. Crime rose. Hope sank.
But amid the darkness, a new spirit of civic action emerged—one rooted not in government intervention, but in neighborhood leadership. Amid perhaps the worst citywide financial crisis in history, U.S. Senator Jacob Javits and Newsweek Editor-in-Chief Osborn Elliott gave New Yorkers a tangible way to improve their neighborhoods and build community.
In 1975, Newsweek Editor-in-Chief Osborn Elliott placed a bold full-page ad in New York Magazine with an urgent, unforgettable headline, calling for “10,000 ‘greedy, heartless’ New Yorkers to work for 5 years. For free.”
It wasn’t a joke. It was a challenge.
He was joined by United States Senator Jacob Javitz. Senator Javits believed that democracy meant more than voting—it meant participation. As a U.S. Senator, he pushed for civil rights, affordable housing, and public investment. His belief in government as a force for good helped shape the founding values of CitizensNYC.
So began nearly five decades of reinventing New York City neighborhoods through resident-led initiatives and engagement.
In the years that followed, volunteers helped create block associations, tutoring programs, food co-ops, neighborhood patrols, and more. They planted gardens in empty lots. They ran literacy workshops. They proved that real solutions to local problems start with the people closest to them.
This bottom-up model of change—neighbors helping neighbors—has remained at the core of CitizensNYC ever since.
A Movement Grows
The 1980s and 1990s were decades of extremes for New York City. The fiscal crisis may have passed, but the recovery was uneven. Many neighborhoods—especially low-income communities of color—were still grappling with disinvestment.
During this time, Citizens Committee for New York City doubled down on its founding mission: support the people on the ground who know their communities best.
We helped block associations reclaim neglected spaces. Residents transformed empty lots into gardens and gathering places. Parents created after-school programs where the city had cut funding. Teachers and neighbors organized cleanups, cultural events, and safety patrols.
More Than A Check
Over time, CitizensNYC evolved from a grantmaker into a full-service partner. We learned that while funding matters, what truly sustains community efforts is support that sticks around—support that sees the full picture, not just the project budget.
We began investing in people as much as projects. We offered capacity-building workshops on grant writing, coalition-building, and navigating city bureaucracy. We helped groups set goals and connect with collaborators. We provided 1-on-1 coaching and technical assistance—not just at the start, but all the way through.
CitizensNYC became a crucial connector between neighborhood leaders and city agencies, anchor nonprofits, cultural institutions, and funders. We built bridges—helping community members access resources, form alliances, and navigate systems that weren’t built with them in mind.
Our strength has always come from our ability to sit in both rooms: the one on the block and the one at City Hall.
Rising To Meet The Moment
New York City’s history is shaped by crisis—but so is its resilience. When disaster strikes, local leaders are often the first to act. CitizensNYC has always stood with them, providing fast, flexible support when it’s needed most.
In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, CitizensNYC launched Unity Grants to support grassroots emergency relief efforts. We funded counseling services, supply drives, and search efforts led by local residents—many of whom were caring for their own communities while grieving and rebuilding.
When Superstorm Sandy devastated neighborhoods across the city, we moved quickly to get aid where it was needed most. Our Hurricane Relief Grants supported hundreds of neighborhood emergency response teams, helping residents provide food, clothing, cleaning supplies, and rebuilding materials—especially in areas overlooked by major recovery efforts.
During the COVID crisis, many small businesses—especially those owned by immigrants, women, and people of color—were shut out of traditional aid. In partnership with Wells Fargo and Trinity Church Wall Street, we launched the Neighborhood Business Grants program. In total, we deployed over $1 million to 200 small businesses, helping them survive and adapt in the face of a historic public health and economic emergency.
CitizensNYC has never been more ambitious—or more needed.
Across all five boroughs, grassroots leaders and neighborhood businesses are stepping up to solve local problems, build resilience, and strengthen social ties. Today, we’re proud to support them with more tools, more funding, and more strategic partnerships than ever before.
Today, this spirit of local leadership still drives our work. We believe the communities we serve don’t need to be told what to do to improve their neighborhoods – they simply need the tools to do it. Every year we make grants and provide support to hundreds of community leaders on the front lines of creating positive change in their neighborhoods