Title
GCRA Community Partnership Grant Program (B)
Explanation
The former Gainesville Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and the current Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area (GCRA) have assisted local non-profit organizations with small-scale grants for events within the District for most of its existence. An example of this is the annual support of the 5th Avenue Arts Festival. Typically, the grant funds assisted with the fixed costs related to city services required via permit. Examples of these costs include street closures, Gainesville Police Department participation, Gainesville Fire Rescue support, etc.
In the past, non-profit groups would request to address the CRA Advisory Board, give a presentation about their event, and ask for the Board's financial support. If the event met the criteria of the CRA Redevelopment Plan, the Board typically approved these funding requests. Grant awards ranged from $2,000 to $5,000.
The GCRA 10-Year Reinvestment Plan identified the need for this program to continue and to develop a formal program for its administration. In its transition to a city department, there was also a need to understand other sources of community grants available from the city to avoid duplication and understand what's available city-wide to promote events of this kind.
GCRA Staff, in conjunction with Parks Recreation and Cultural Affairs, has been working to understand how to help supplement their Special Event Additional Support (SEAS) grant program. The SEAS grant is specifically for special events throughout Gainesville and focuses on support services required for safety, traffic, waste, and park clean-up.
In thinking through how the GCRA could differentiate its program, complement the SEAS grant, and meet a community need, Staff created a draft grant program to assist with other event costs not covered in PRCA's grant program. Events must align with the plan by focusing on community, arts and culture, recovery/resiliency,...
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