Macon-Bibb selected for national Love Your Block program to improve neighborhoods by working with residents

Mayor Lester Miller announced Friday that Macon-Bibb has been selected to join Love Your Block, an initiative led by the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University, to launch resident-led projects that improve their cities.

As one of just 25 new local governments from 20 U.S. states to join the latest edition of the program, Macon-Bibb will receive $70,000 to engage residents in efforts that clear vacant lots, reclaim public space, and better their communities, as well as expert support from the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation and a dedicated Love Your Block Fellow to support their work-and build trust in local government.

"The most good we can do in our neighborhoods is done by first listening to the needs of its residents, which is why we have always prioritized community priorities in our work and created Macon Good Neighbors to ensure we maintained that focus," says Mayor Miller. "Working with Love Your Block, we have a chance to learn from other cities and apply that to our needs and resources."

"We are providing a direct connection between people and the government services they need and deserve, and that's something every government should provide," says Jerry Battle, Neighborhood Program Coordinator. "As I've met with people throughout the community, many tell me they just want to be heard and to see very simple things taken care of. I'm excited to work with Love Your Block to help better provide these services in our neighborhoods."

"Residents often have the clearest view of what their neighborhoods need-and Love Your Block helps mayors and municipalities bring them into the work-and see those ideas through," Francisca M. Rojas, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins. "That translates to tangible improvements communities want-and that they lead-with their city hall's support, and shows what happens when local government invites the public in to solve problems and deliver, together."

"Community engagement is more than asking residents what they need, it's giving them the opportunity and resources to help shape the future of their own neighborhoods," says Khaia Gibson, a volunteer with the program. "Love Your Block allows us to turn resident ideas into action while empowering neighbors to take ownership and pride in their community. Clean, safe, and welcoming neighborhoods are the foundation for a better quality of life."

About Macon Good Neighbors

Macon Good Neighbors was launched in early 2026 to provide residents with a way to communicate their needs to local government and partner agencies and to coordinate services that address those needs quickly. The program began in the King's Park neighborhood and has since expanded to include Unionville, Houston Avenue, and Payne City.

"This initiative is focused on one simple, important goal: improving the quality of life in our communities by listening to residents addressing concerns and creating visible change that people can be proud of," says Battle. "We want the neighborhoods to know that their voices matter and that when communities and local partners work together, positive things can happen."

When the program was publicly launched in May, Battle talked about when he first met with the Kings Park neighborhood and how they sat together casually about what was needed. They came up with the rough draft of a plan to get things done, and much of that has already been done, including fixing or cleaning signage, assessing lighting needs, removing dead trees and planting new ones, street sweeping, and more. Over the course of several weeks, Battle and the Solid Waste Department coordinated special days for collecting large furniture and other debris. More long-term projects include resurfacing the basketball court, installing new playground equipment, and building a new gazebo for neighborhood gatherings.

About the Love Your Block Program

The new 25 Love Your Block city halls include Albuquerque, NM; Aurora, IL; Birmingham, AL; Chattanooga, TN; Columbia, SC; Deerfield Beach, FL; Dubuque, IA; Eugene, OR; Everett, WA; Frederick, MD; Greensboro, NC; Harlingen, TX; Hoboken, NJ; Honolulu, HI; Jersey City, NJ; La Crosse, WI; Lancaster, PA; Lansing, MI; Macon, GA; Mobile, AL; Newark, NJ; South Fulton, GA; Tulsa, OK; Wilmington, DE; and Winston-Salem, NC.

They join a broader national program that, since its founding in 2009, has helped 50 local governments engage more than 88,000 residents across 33 states to remove more than 7 million pounds of trash, clean over 550,000 square feet of graffiti, create nearly 800 art displays, and transform the areas residents rely on most. These results have also been shown to build ties between city halls and their citizens: a 2021 study by the Urban Institute found that participating Love Your Block municipalities improved social cohesion among residents, increased civic participation, and strengthened relationships between local government and the people it serves.

For more information, visit https://publicinnovation.jhu.edu/programs/love-your-block/.