Deadline: 30-May-23
The Village of Chester is pleased to announce a call for applications to non-profit organizations for activities that encourage tourism growth by celebrating the heritage, culture, and natural environment, promoting inclusion and engagement of citizens, or creating an experience that encourages ongoing/repeat visitation to the Village and its businesses and organizations.
Policy Objectives
- The objective of the grant policy is to:
- Support activities that advertise opportunities for the Village of Chester and its residents to grow, flourish, and prosper
- To encourage tourism growth in a way that also
- engages citizens of the Village in the celebration of their heritage, culture, and natural environment
- promotes inclusion and engagement of citizens from a wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, and socio-economic perspectives
- supports civic leaders to be innovative and creative in benefiting local community
- creates a range of experiences and interactions for visitors that encourage ongoing and repeat interactions with the Village and its residents, businesses, and organizations
Funding Information
- The maximum amount available to any one organization is $5000 annually
Principles
- The grant policy is based on the following:
- activities (e.g. festivals, art retreats, concerts, markets, etc.) should be celebratory in nature
- activities should help to grow the local tourism sector in a way that enhances the visitor experience and makes their community a more appealing destination
- the development of partnerships is important, and priority will be given to projects that encourage participation and funding by a variety of sources
- funding is dependent on both the assessment of the project’s fit with the interests of the Village, and also the availability of funds within the annual budget
- funding priority will be for costs associated with implementation of an event or item
- Funds are approved only for the project submitted. Requests for changes to project plans, timelines, or new projects must be made in writing in advance of any spending.
- Unused project funds must be returned to the Village Office for redistribution.
Eligibility Criteria
- Organizations are only eligible for one grant from the Village each fiscal year
- If the request is for a contribution to a larger project, there must be a feasible overarching project plan and budget
- Only nonprofit organizations are eligible for funding. Applicants may partner with others in the undertaking of the activity, or apply for funding to support their participation in an activity run by another party
- The project, activity or event must be designed to enhance the visitor experience or increase the appeal of the Village of Chester as a destination
- The project should respect the available village infrastructure (gathering space, parking, water, etc.)
- Applicants need to have a plan to attract visitors and participants to the event, while encouraging participation by Village residents
- Events which limit participation to members of an organization are not eligible for funding. Exceptions may be made where programs or initiatives are open to the public
- Churches /faith-based organizations are not eligible for funding.
Evaluation
- Applications will be reviewed using the following evaluation criteria:
- Demonstrated impact to attract tourism
- Benefit to the community at large
- The organization has a demonstrated financial need for grant funding
- For large projects, evidence of project funding sources and partnerships other than the Village Commission
- The Village Commission reserves the right to approve or deny any project based on conditions and interests at the time of the application.
For more information, visit Community Grant.