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LOCAL BUZZ Second Downtown Challenge grant program announced THE COMMUNIT Y FOUNDATION OF CENTRAL GEORGIA has announced the second Downtown Challenge, a grant program advancing the community's best ideas for downtown Macon. e Challenge is supported with a combined $1.5 million from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Peyton Anderson Foundation. Ideas from the Challenge must support the newly-updated Macon Action Plan, also released Jan. 19. "The Downtown Challenge is an open invitation to nonprofits, businesses and individuals who want to improve the community," said Kathryn Dennis, president of the Community Foundation of Central Georgia. " We look forward to funding your ideas and encouraging your hard work in any way that advances the updated Macon Action Plan." Applications for the first-round of grants are open until March 15. To apply, visit cfcga.org/grant/downtown-challenge. e refreshed Macon Action Plan builds off of the original plan, which launched in October 2015. With a focus on urban core economic development, experience, living and connectivity, the plan has been updated to include more family-friendly, inclusive, creative and green strategies. e plan refresh better reflects changes to Macon's urban core, and was implemented as the original project was largely completed ahead of schedule. Many of the projects funded by the first Downtown Challenge have become permanent fixtures in downtown Macon, such as the yearly Downtown Christmas Lights Extravaganza and the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail's expansion into the downtown Macon grid. "Economic development downtown fuels the resurgence of our entire community, and the refreshed Macon Action Plan is the way the entire community agrees to make it happen fast, equitable and durable," said Josh Rogers, president and CEO of NewTown Macon. e plan is available to view at MaconActionPlan.com. LOCAL BUZZ Community partners open Brookdale Warming Center THE MACON-BIBB County Transit Authority has joined multiple community agencies in providing people a warm and safe place to stay at the Brookdale Warming Center. They will offer free rides to the center from the Historic Macon Terminal Station for anyone who has a pass provided by local support organizations. "There hasn't been one organization that has said 'no' to helping make the Brookdale Warming Center possible, and that speaks very highly of our community," said Macon-Bibb County Mayor Lester Miller. "One of our conversations from the beginning of putting this together was about getting people there, and I want to thank the Transit Authority for providing these rides." MTA President & CEO Craig Ross said he's proud to use MTA resources to help those in need. "We know that if people can't pay for heat in their homes or are homeless, they may not have reliable transportation, so we want to remove that barrier and get as many people there as possible," Ross said. "We have the resources to help people in need, and this is a chance for our entire community to step forward and help." e center, which opened Jan. 6, is a place where people can get out of the cold, take a shower, get three meals per day provided by the Salvation Army and be safe. It is open 24-hours-a-day, seven-days- a-week during Middle Georgia's coldest months. ere are two separate wings of rooms for people to stay in, one for adults and one for families with children. Bibb County WINTERVENTION, A DOWNTOWN CHALLENGE 1.0 FUNDED PROJECT, HOSTED PARTICIPANTS FOR OUTDOOR PLAY IN THE POPLAR STREET TUNNEL. PHOTO BY LUKE USRY 26 maconmagazine.com | FEBRUARY/MARCH 2021