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Weed and Seed

The Weed and Seed strategy is a U.S. Department of Justice initiative which began in 1991. The program is a focused, comprehensive effort to revitalize neighborhoods suffering from high crime rates. The goal is to "weed out" violent crime, drug use, and gang activity from selected neighborhoods and then to help prevent crime from reoccurring by "seeding" those sites with a wide range of public and private efforts to empower and develop them.

The key element of the Weed and Seed initiative is the development of a comprehensive strategy. The success of the strategy depends on the coordination by law enforcement, community groups and social service agencies -- government and private -- to work together to revitalize a distressed neighborhood.

The Decision To Become a Weed and Seed Community

Weed and Seed is first and foremost a strategy, not another grant program, to empowered communities to reclaim their neighborhoods. Success of a Weed and Seed initiative is largely dependent upon the desire of those within the community to commit to improving the community. While the "Official Recognition" designation lasts for only three years, the goal of the strategy is to become a self-supporting and ongoing strategy.

Requirements: An organized steering committee, convened by the U.S. Attorney, which reflects the major principle of partnership, and which involves the community, the private sector, local, state and federal government.

  1. A defined targeted neighborhood, and a needs assessment conducted with the active involvement and input of the residents of that neighborhood.

  2. Identification of existing and future resources by all members of the steering committee that can be directed to meet those needs identified by residents of the neighborhood and a strategy for targeting and delivery of services.

  3. A comprehensive law enforcement strategy to "weed" out criminal elements from the neighborhood, and implementation of community policing in the neighborhood.

  4. A comprehensive neighborhood revitalization plan that addresses the social, economic and physical restoration problems in the target area.

  5. A detailed implementation plan addressing the four primary elements of the strategy (law enforcement, community policing, prevention and intervention, and neighborhood revitalization) and their interrelationship.

  6. A locally based monitoring and assessment mechanism.

Six-Step Procedure for Seeking Official Recognition

Step 1: An interested community contacts the U.S. Attorney, who convenes a steering committee.

Step 2: The steering committee, through the guidance and facilitation of the U.S. Attorney, produces an implementation plan and a memorandum of agreement which outlines the commitments by community, state, local, and federal partners.

Step 3: When all the groundwork is done, and the requirements listed above have been met, the U.S. Attorney transmits the plan to the Attorney General through the Executive Office for Weed and Seed. The Executive Office reviews the plan to assess compliance with the requirements.

Step 4: Once certified by the Attorney General as meeting the minimum requirements, the community will be notified that it has been Officially Recognized as a Weed and Seed Community.

Step 5: The Executive Office for Weed and Seed may invite Official Recognized communities to apply for Weed and Seed funding. A coordinating agency, determined by the U.S. Attorney, will be responsible for application, administration and accountability of the funds.

Step 6: While under the banner of Official Recognition, the community works to establish a self-supporting Weed and Seed strategy.

Three communities in the Southern District of Ohio have implemented the Weed and Seed strategy: Columbus and Hamilton have received Official Recognition from the Department of Justice. The city of Cincinnati is in the process of implementing the strategy.