Together, America Prospers

Rural Placemaking Innovation Challenge

What does this 

initiative do?

The Rural Placemaking Innovation 

Challenge (RPIC) provides planning 

support, technical assistance, and 

training to encourage placemaking 

activities in rural communities. 

Funds can be used to help build 

capacity for broadband access, 

preserve cultural and historic 

structures, and support the 

development of transportation, 

housing, and recreational spaces.

Who can apply?

• Federally-recognized Tribes 

(information is available at this 

link: https://go.usa.gov/xJwb8) 

and Tribal organizations

• Institutions of higher 

education, including: 

o Land Grant Colleges and 

Universities as established 

with the Morrill Acts of 1862, 

1890, and 1994 (information 

is available at this link: 

https://tinyurl.com/4tbh47uj) 

o Historically Black 

Colleges and Universities 

(HBCUs - information 

is available at this link: 

https://tinyurl.com/mrxcapt5) 

o Hispanic-Serving Institutions

• Nonprofit organizations with 

501(c)(3) IRS tax-exempt status 

• Public bodies

• Small, private businesses 

that meet size standards 

established by the U.S. Small 

Business Administration (SBA 

- information is available at this 

link: https://go.usa.gov/xJwbh) 

Applicants must demonstrate 

experience in administering 

state or federal grants, and 

providing economic development 

and placemaking technical 

assistance in one of four U.S. 

regions: northeastern, southern, 

Midwestern, or western.

What is “placemaking?”

Placemaking is a collaborative 

engagement process that helps 

leaders from rural communities create 

quality places where people want to 

live, work, learn, and play. 

Working with partners in the public, 

private, Tribal, philanthropic, and 

technology sectors, placemaking uses 

a wrap-around approach to community 

and economic development that 

blends creativity and infrastructure 

initiatives to build and promote vibrant 

public spaces.

What kind of funding is available?

Up to $4 million in RPIC funding is 

available. The maximum grant award 

is $250,000.

How can funds be used?

Grant recipients can use funds to 

provide technical assistance and 

training to help rural communities 

identify and gather partners, establish 

community needs, and develop 

placemaking plans. We particularly 

encourage applications that support 

planning projects to improve capacity 

for broadband infrastructure, 

deployment and access.

What is an eligible area?

Planning must directly benefit 

cities or towns with populations 

of 50,000 or fewer. 

What key factors must plans include?

Your plan must demonstrate your ability 

to support rural planning activities on 

a multijurisdictional or multisectoral 

basis, and it must: 

1. Emphasize partnerships and 

collaboration among public, 

private, philanthropic, and 

community partners

2. Combine federal, state, local, and 

Tribal (as appropriate) resources to 

make wide-ranging impacts on rural 

quality of life

3. Use placemaking processes to 

create quality places where people 

want to live, work, learn, and play 

How to apply:

You must use grants.gov to apply. 

You will find the RPIC application by 

entering Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CDFA) number 10.890 in 

the CDFA drop-down under “Basic 

Search Criteria,” located at the top 

left of the Search Grants webpage, 

available at https://go.usa.gov/xJf9j. 

For more information:

For more information, 

email RD.RPIC@usda.gov or 

visit www.rd.usda.gov/RPIC.

NOTE: Because information is subject to change, always consult official program 

instructions or contact your local Rural Development office for help. A list is available 

at this link: https://go.usa.gov/xJHPE. You will find additional resources, forms, and 

program information at https://rd.usda.gov. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, 

employer, and lender.

June 2022