Weed and Seed

==Background==
Weed & Seed is funded from federal sources. The federal policy is shiftng with the Bush Administration and less money is being made available to blue states and programs such as in Pittsburgh. So, the Weed & Seed program is not self reliant.
:Much of the programming of Weed & Seed is based upon grant writters and the efforts of doing grant proposals. 
Weed & Seed, as a concept, is not new. Some questions linger as to its effectiveness. 
Weed & Seed has a small staff. Less than ten worked in the Pittsburgh office. The Weed & Seed efforts are often about building teamwork among other agencies that are already out in the neighborhoods. Others then go to Weed & Seed to get mini-grants to pay for programs for the kids. 
:Sadly, many of the organizations that are at the grass-roots levels of many neighborhoods do not do much to cooperate. Many have their own turf battles for money, attention and clients. 
Weed & Seed attacks the past problems and the present more than the future. A program that was aimed for the future would do more to flourish. 
====
* Planks about Weed & Seed from Mark Rauterkus, along with Crime & Punishment
==Links==
===External News ===
* Transition with O'Connor as Mayor and terminated Farley from the Tribune Review in December 2005.
* Homestead Weed & Seed to continue in 2006. It stays alive after federal funding expires. New name expected.
== Homestead==
http://rauterkus.com/art/sside/Thumbnails/SCREAM.jpg
One Western PA's site for Weed & Seed has been Homestead. That program is closing at the end of 2005. Homestead has a library with the oldest indoor swimming pool in North America. In 1928 and in 1932, Olympic swimmers lived and trained in Homestead, at the library's indoor swim pool. One summer, Mark Rauterkus was the swimming instructor at the Carnegie Library of Homestead. A number of programs were designed and approved. However, they were nixed by upper administrators who didn't see the value in the flourishing concepts.