”Empowering the Erie area one neighborhood at a time.”

Purpose of the Neighborhood Resource Organization

The NRO is a non-profit agency created to provide resources, support, and technical assistance throughout Erie County to neighborhood groups such as Neighborhood Watch Groups and Neighborhood Associations. This organization is committed to the ongoing fight against community disorganization. It does not have a yearly fee or membership. It is a service agency that:

• Offers regular trainings
• Notifies groups of funding opportunities
• Assists with funding applications
• Researches and communicates best practice information
• Educates people on services available
• Connects groups with key community partners as well as each other
• Serves as a fiscal agent for grant funds to individual neighborhood groups

These services are available to any neighborhood group that is organized, or that wishes to organize, and desires to utilize the services.

As set forth in the Community Action Plan (CAP) which was published in June 2012, the Community Focused Committee of the Erie County Policy and Planning Council has created a new entity to provide support to individual Neighborhood Groups such as Watch Groups and Neighborhood Associations. The committee is dedicated to carrying out the strategies of the CAP and to providing the resources that neighborhoods need in order to be successful. This entity is called the Neighborhood Resource Organization (NRO). It will find its home initially at the Mercyhurst University Civic Institute with a goal of moving it into a space within the community.