Since its inception in 2006, the Improvement Fund of the North Platte/Lincoln County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau has awarded nearly one million dollars to Lincoln County organizations for brick-and-mortar improvements and expansions to local attractions and visitor services. Due to the overwhelming number of applicants seeking these funds, the North Platte/Lincoln County Convention and Visitors Bureau Advisory Committee has added an intent to apply requirement to the application process.
An “intent to apply” in the form of a letter must be sent to the NP/LCCVB by July 1, 2013, stating an estimate of the amount to be requested in the grant application, the total project cost, a brief description of the proposed project and the organizations involved in the project. Organizations that do not submit an intent to apply will not be eligible for submitting an application for Improvement Funds. Qualified organizations are 501(c)3, not-for-profit, or divisions of local government.
Following a review of the intent to apply, the staff of the NP/LCCVB will schedule a meeting with potential applicants to discuss the project and determine if it is eligible for a “minor grant” application or a “major grant” application.
Minor grants are defined as those in which the entire project has a cost of less than $5,000, or the activity is in the nature of repairs or maintenance to existing facilities. Major grants are those in which the entire project has a cost of more than $5,000, or which involve new construction, whether as a new attraction or visitor service, or an expansion of an existing attraction or visitor service.
The intent to apply must be returned to the NP/LCCVB office byMonday, July 1, 2013. For those projects given approval to submit a full application, the application will be made available immediately upon approval, and the due date will be September 30. Organizations that do not submit an intent to apply or miss the deadline will not be able to submit a grant application for Improvement Funds.
For more information contact Lisa Burke or Muriel Clark at the North Platte/Lincoln County Convention and Visitors Bureau at 315 W. Eugene Ave, 308.532.4729, [email protected] or[email protected].