Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation
Community Access Project builds software that surfaces two things people miss: public assistance they already qualify for, and community events nearby. Both exist. Both go unclaimed.
Neighborhoods covered — Pittsburgh
A large number of people who qualify for these programs never apply, because nobody told them they could.
We maintain a plain-language directory of public assistance programs available to residents of Allegheny County. Each entry explains who generally qualifies, names the specific thing that most often stops people from applying, and links directly to the agency that decides.
We decide nothing and we sign nobody up. Every link goes to the government agency or nonprofit that administers the program.
Monthly food benefits, income-tested
Nutrition support for pregnant people, infants and young children
Health coverage for adults and for children in working families
Help with heating bills and heating emergencies
Annual state rebate for older adults and people with disabilities
VITA sites, no cost, for households under the income limit
Child Care Works, for working and studying parents
Housing, benefits, family and consumer matters
Discounted and free rides for those who qualify
A neighborhood bulletin board, not a social network.
Our first project is a free iPhone app for Pittsburgh. It gathers public events automatically from the published calendars of libraries, museums, parks, community groups and small venues — nobody has to sign up for their events to appear — and organizes everything by neighborhood. The app opens on the one you live in.
The benefits directory lives inside it, on its own screen.
The things that make consumer apps profitable are the things we removed.
Community Access Project is a nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of Pennsylvania. We do not sell advertising, user data, or premium features, and we have no plans to. Pages for public institutions — libraries, parks, public universities — are permanently unclaimable, on the principle that civic space belongs to nobody.
If you run a library branch, a community group, a park program or a small venue and you would like your events listed — or corrected — write to us.