‘Weed And Seed’ Grants Tackle Crime, Sow Renewal

The Justice Department awarded a total of $25.1 million in grants to 79 communities to run projects aimed at reducing violent crime, gang activity, drug trafficking and drug use, officials said Friday.

Grants in the department’s 5-year-old “Weed and Seed” program help neighborhoods “weed out” crime and “seed in” neighborhood revitalization, said Laurie Robinson, assistant attorney general for the Office of Justice Department Programs.

For example, a program run in San Jose, Calif., produced 1,431 arrests and 819 convictions during its first 18 months, she said.

In order to receive the grant money, neighborhood organizations must demonstrate their ability to raise resources from both the public and private sectors, the department said. In Omaha, Neb., organizers rehabilitated 35 housing units and built 20 more.

Grants were awarded to communities in 33 states and the District of Columbia.