Cities of Service

What Cities of Service does

Cities of Service is a nonprofit civic engagement coalition organization founded in 2009 by New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. Originally incubated at Bloomberg Philanthropies, it became an independent entity in 2014 and joined the Centers for Civic Impact at Johns Hopkins University in 2020, where it operates from the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation in Baltimore. The organization supports a coalition of more than 300 cities across the Americas and Europe, representing over 80 million people, with mayors and city leaders joining by signing a Declaration of Service.

The organization's core methodology is its "Impact Volunteering" framework, a city-led, citizen-powered approach in which city governments and community members jointly identify priority challenges, deliberate, take action, and demonstrate measurable outcomes. Cities of Service operationalizes this methodology through a portfolio of grant-funded programs: Love Your Block (neighborhood revitalization and blight reduction; nearly 50 cities served since 2009), Guiding Opportunities (community-informed Opportunity Zone development), Experience Matters (engagement of residents aged 50+), Resilience AmeriCorps and Prepared Together (disaster preparedness), and the Chief Service Officer Leadership Initiative. Coalition cities receive technical assistance, coaching, peer network access, a resource library, subsidized volunteer websites, and — for grant cohort participants — direct funding ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 and AmeriCorps VISTA member placements.

The business model is grant-funded rather than revenue-generating: Cities of Service receives philanthropic capital from Bloomberg Philanthropies, The Rockefeller Foundation, The Prudential Foundation, the Walmart Foundation, AARP, and the Corporation for National and Community Service, and disburses that capital as competitive grants to coalition cities. Services are provided to city governments at no direct cost. Cities of Service is not a software product company; its "technology" is its programmatic framework, content library, and coalition distribution channel.

Name

Cities of Service

Legal name

Cities of Service

Website

https://citiesofservice.jhu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cities of Service is a nonprofit coalition housed at Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation that helps mayors and city leaders across 300+ cities engage citizens to address neighborhood revitalization, disaster resilience, economic development, and intergenerational civic challenges.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Engagement Services

NAICS

Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (9251), Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Mayor/City Manager & General Administration (BPAIACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Community Centers & Neighborhood Support Services (BPAGAEAL), Public Works & Municipal Infrastructure (Streets, Stormwater, Facilities) (BPAIACAF), Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services (BPAIACAI)

Keywords

• Civic engagement services
• Citizen volunteer programs
• City government consulting
• Neighborhood revitalization grants
• Community impact programs

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants and Philanthropic Funding: Primary funding comes from Bloomberg Philanthropies and The Rockefeller Foundation, among other foundation partners. Cities of Service receives generous funding to design and manage competitive grant programs for cities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Cities of Service helps mayors and city leaders engage citizens to solve public problems by providing grant-funded programs (Love Your Block, Guiding Opportunities, Experience Matters, Resilience AmeriCorps, Prepared Together), technical assistance, AmeriCorps VISTA members, and peer network access. The organization also operates a coalition membership model for 300+ cities and maintains a knowledge library of Blueprints, Guides, Playbooks, and Case Studies.

Product overview

Cities of Service is a civic engagement organization (not a software technology product company) that offers a portfolio of grant programs, membership services, and knowledge resources to help mayors and city leaders engage citizens to solve public problems. The core programs include Love Your Block (neighborhood revitalization), Guiding Opportunities (Opportunity Zone engagement), Experience Matters (50+ volunteer engagement), and Resilience AmeriCorps (disaster preparedness). These programs provide cities with grant funding, AmeriCorps VISTA members, and technical assistance. The organization also maintains a coalition network of 300+ cities providing peer exchange, technical support, and resource sharing. All offerings are service-based programs rather than software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Love Your Block: A grant program bringing city leaders and residents together to build stronger neighborhoods, one block at a time, to reduce blight and spur neighborhood-driven change.
• Experience Matters
• Guiding Opportunities
• Resilience AmeriCorps

Products and services

• Love Your Block A signature grant program that enables local governments to engage communities in neighborhood revitalization efforts. Cities receive funding, AmeriCorps VISTA members, and technical assistance to award mini-grants to residents and community partners to reduce blight and spur neighborhood-driven change.
• Guiding Opportunities A program that helps city leaders engage residents to achieve positive economic and social outcomes with community-informed Opportunity Zone investments. Supports Chief Opportunity Zone Officers with funding, technical assistance, and AmeriCorps VISTA members.
• Experience Matters A program in partnership with AARP that draws upon the experience and expertise of adults aged 50+ to build stronger cities. Each participating city receives $30,000 and technical assistance to engage older volunteers in tackling public problems including financial insecurity, property code violations, and youth mentorship.
• Resilience AmeriCorps A program providing $25,000 grants, two AmeriCorps VISTA members, and program consulting services to cities for a two-year period to prepare vulnerable communities for hardship and disaster.
• Prepared Together A program that helped seven cities engage citizen volunteers in initiatives making cities more resilient to weather-related disasters. Each city received $25,000 and AmeriCorps VISTA members for one year.
• Bay Area Impact Volunteering A program through which city leaders engaged citizen volunteers to create more resilient communities before, during, and after a disaster. Each city received $25,000-$50,000 in grant funding along with program consulting services.
• Chief Service Officer Leadership Initiative A program that installed a senior-level administration staff member in each participating city to plan, coordinate, and evaluate the implementation of a citywide service plan engaging citizen volunteers. Each grantee city received up to $100,000 in grant funding along with program consulting services.
• Cities of Service Coalition A coalition of more than 300 cities across the Americas and Europe representing over 80 million people. Coalition cities receive technical assistance, peer network access, grant programs, site visits, resource library access, national exposure, connections to corporate partners, recruitment channel, and subsidized volunteer websites.
• Resources and Publications A library of practical resources including Blueprints, Case Studies, Guides, Playbooks, Reports, Service Plans, and Engagement Techniques that provide step-by-step guidance for city leaders building service plans or implementing citizen engagement initiatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 26,000+ community members have revitalized 3,500+ community spaces since 2009
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers30 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2020, Cities of Service joined the Centers for Civic Impact at Johns Hopkins University, contributing citizen engagement expertise to their efforts to empower the public sector. The Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation provides institutional home and academic backing.
• AARPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Experience Matters program, which draws upon the experience and expertise of adults aged 50+ to build stronger cities. Five cities engaged residents 50+ to tackle public problems including financial insecurity, property code violations, and youth mentorship. AARP and Cities of Service also co-published 'A Practical Guide to Engaging Volunteers Aged 50+ Online' and 'Engaging the Community to Create Community.'
• Corporation for National and Community ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Resilience AmeriCorps program launched in 2016 to increase resilience in ten U.S. cities. The Corporation for National and Community Service supports AmeriCorps VISTA members deployed to cities through the program.
• LISC DCsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-time community partner active in Washington D.C.'s Ward 8. Partnered with the D.C. Office of Planning and Cities of Service's Guiding Opportunities program to launch Resilient Together initiative supporting artists and small businesses of color with small grants. Drew on deep web of relationships to engage the community in creative placemaking efforts.
• Public AgendasupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner for the 'A Practical Guide to Engaging Volunteers Aged 50+ Online.' Conducted research informing the guide's insights on virtual resident engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Code for America: A nonprofit that partners with city governments on digital civic engagement and service delivery programs (e.g., Clear My Record, GetCalFresh). Highly comparable in targeting mayors and city halls to deploy resident-facing tools and programs.
• Public Agenda: A nonprofit research and engagement organization partnering with cities on resident engagement and deliberative democracy. Already a research partner to Cities of Service on the 'Practical Guide to Engaging Volunteers 50+ Online'—highly comparable mission.
• Living Cities: A collaborative of major foundations and financial institutions working with mayors on equitable urban development, including Opportunity Zones. Directly comparable in working with city leaders through philanthropic-funded coalitions on inclusive economic development.
• Results for America (What Works Cities): Operates the What Works Cities program that partners with mayors to use data and evidence to improve services. Comparable as a coalition of cities supported through technical assistance and grants from major philanthropies.
• National Civic League: A nonprofit that convenes local governments and residents on civic engagement, deliberative democracy, and community governance. Directly comparable mission and municipal coalition-style engagement approach.

Broad incumbents

• International City/County Management Association (ICMA): A 100+ year-old membership association of city and county managers providing training, research, and technical assistance. Broad incumbent in municipal capacity-building that overlaps with Cities of Service's coalition and peer-learning model.
• Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation (Harvard Kennedy School): Academic center housed at Harvard Kennedy School that researches and promotes democratic governance and civic innovation in cities. Comparable to Cities of Service's JHU affiliation and research-driven engagement frameworks.
• AmericaCorps / Corporation for National and Community Service: Federal agency operating AmeriCorps, including the VISTA members that Cities of Service places in coalition cities. Overlapping footprint in city-based national service programs and disaster resilience (Resilience AmeriCorps).
• Bloomberg Philanthropies: The primary funder and incubator of Cities of Service; broader philanthropist funding dozens of city-government initiatives including Mayors Challenge, What Works Cities, and City Leadership Initiative. Operates as an adjacent ecosystem partner with overlapping city-coalition models.

Emerging players

• Knight Foundation: National foundation funding local journalism, civic engagement, and community-driven city programs. Comparable as a parallel civic-engagement funder with overlapping grantee cities and program themes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CitiesOfService
• Facebookfacebook.com/CitiesofService
• Instagraminstagram.com/citiesofservice

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cities of Service