Minnesota grants for City or township governments

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is offering approximately $4.5 million in grants to support organics management projects aimed at reducing the amount of organic material sent to landfills or incinerators. This funding is intended for projects that enhance or establish collection, processing (through composting, anaerobic digestion, or feeding to animals), and education/outreach initiatives related to organics management. Eligible entities must serve or operate within Minnesota, and include not-for-profit organizations, businesses, institutions, political subdivisions (e.g., counties, cities), state agencies, and tribal governments. Applications are due by 4 p.m. Central Time on June 10, 2024.

Art Project Program Grant Application Program Overview: The Art Project program provides funding of up to $5,000 to support relevant, meaningful arts activities with value to the community your organization serves. Support may be used to create, perform, exhibit, or publish artistic works; or to present arts events by contracting the services of other organizations or individuals. Important Dates for FY24: Open: April 1, 2024 Deadline: Sunday, May 12, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. Project Start Date: July 1, 2024 Deadlines are firm, applicants are encouraged to finish in advance of the deadline. Assistance is available during normal business hours via email at [email protected] or [email protected]. Who Can Apply? Eligible applicants include: State-registered and federally recognized non-profit, tax-exempt organizations Accredited schools Tribal governments Units of government Eligibility Criteria: Organization must be primarily based (permanent address) in Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, or St. Louis County (outside Duluth) or of the four Tribal Nations within our region: Bois Forte, Fond du Lac, Grand Portage, or Leech Lake (within Itasca County) for at least six months. All Duluth organizations are eligible regardless of budget size. Organizations outside of Duluth with minimum prior year arts operating expenses of $40,000 are eligible. No outstanding or overdue final reports from past funding. Applicants may apply only once per grant round and cannot receive funding from the same grant program twice in a fiscal year. Fiscal sponsorship is allowed for groups without non-profit, tax-exempt status. What Can I Fund? Art supplies Volunteer and administrative costs Advertising, marketing, and promotional materials Equipment or technology purchases (integral to the artistic project, <25% of total request) How Do I Apply? Applications must be completed using the ARAC Grant Portal. Submissions in any other format will not be accepted. Instructions for navigating the online system can be found by clicking on the ‘Apply Now’ button on our website. Ensure your application includes all required materials. Contact Us: For assistance or inquiries, please contact us at [email protected] or [email protected] during normal business hours. Grant renewed every year.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for non-profit arts organizations to carry out specific artistic projects, such as theatrical performances or cultural festivals, with a requirement for a cash match.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for arts projects, including theatrical productions, folk artist sponsorships, and public art installations, aimed at non-profit organizations and government entities.

The Thief River Falls Area Community Fund is inviting applications for grants from nonprofit or public entities within the Thief River Falls School District area. Grants are intended for projects, programs, or activities that enhance the quality of life for residents and visitors of the Thief River Falls area. Primary focus areas include youth engagement, social need, senior enrichment, and overall quality of life enhancement. Applications are open until May 1, 2024. The fund is a component of the Northwest Minnesota Foundation, which serves 12 northwestern Minnesota counties. More information and application details can be found on their website.

The Rural and Underserved Clinical Rotations grant, authorized by Minnesota Statutes Sec 144.1505, aims to enhance health professional training sites, including those for physicians, physician assistants, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, dental therapists, and mental health professionals. This program supports the expansion of existing clinical training programs to include rural and underserved rotations or specialized training tracks, focusing on primary care settings in rural communities. This expansion is intended to strengthen the healthcare workforce and improve access to healthcare in these communities.

The Pollinator Pathways grant program promotes native plantings that establish key corridors (or pathways) for at-risk pollinators such as (but not limited to) the Monarch Butterfly and Rusty Patched Bumble Bee, Minnesota’s State Bee. Donor Name: Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources State: Minnesota County: All Counties Type of Grant: Grant Deadline: 06/20/2024 Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000 Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned Details: The Minnesota Pollinator Pathways program is led by local conservation partners who work with Minnesota Residents to promote and establish pollinator plantings and key corridors for at-risk pollinators such as (but not limited to) the Monarch Butterfly and Rusty Patched Bumble Bee, Minnesota’s State Bee. This can be done by establishing/connecting pollinator pathways across communities with an emphasis on residences and/or community spaces. Pathways can range from a local neighborhood scale to across watersheds. Creating these pathways, by establishing deep rooted native vegetation will have climate resiliency benefits, increase biodiversity and provide other important ecosystem services. Funding Informaion A total of $1,100,000 is available for funding for the FY24/25 biennium . Only grant requests greater than $50,000 will be considered. Eligible Activities and Expenses  The primary purpose of activities funded through this program is to promote native plantings that establish key corridors for at-risk pollinators and establishing habitat for benefitting pollinators at scales from local neighborhoods to across watersheds. This will be achieved through efforts to establish habitat and educating Minnesotans about pollinators within pollinator corridors/pathways and building overall interest in ecological landscaping. This program is intended to fund pollinator plantings and to inspire and guide DIY projects. Eligible activities can consist of: Project development and public outreach actives which will directly support or supplement the goals and outcomes of the work plan such as civic engagement: public outreach; initial contacts, action, and activities with landowners/residents and/or partners; preliminary information gathering, conservation marketing or other activities. Establishment of pollinator habitat projects such as planting beneficial trees and shrubs, pollinator lawns, pollinator meadows, native pocket planting, container planting on impervious surfaces (pavement, rooftops, apartment decks etc) that are no greater than 5 ac. in size. Eligible project expense include: MN Native Plants and Seeds includes insecticide/neonicotinoid free flowers/forbs, bare root plants, grasses and sedges, trees and shrubs, and seeds. Projects should have at least three blooming plants species during spring, summer and fall with higher diversity strongly encouraged. Source native plants and seeds within 175 miles of the project location to the extent possible. Project expenses including biodegradable weed suppression mulch (non-dyed preferred), compost, fencing or other herbivores portion materials, signage, equipment rental fees, and delivery fees), contractor installation and/or maintenance of project. Program and project support- education, outreach, marketing, staff time; Education development and implementation of conservation education activities and programs such as workshops, clinics, publications, websites, presentations, fairs, etc. Supplies/Equipment acquisition of equipment (hand sod kicker, hand shovels, hand rakes and trowels, watering tree gator) or supplies. Administration/Coordination staff time for grant administration Technical and engineering assistance necessary to implement grant activities associated with technical site assessment, surveys, preliminary analysis and design, final design construction supervision, installation, inspection, and completion of projects. Eligible Lands: Projects should have a focus on residential and/or community and/or educational space garden with a maximum project size of 5 acres. Eligible expenses are those expenses solely incurred though project activities that are directly related to and necessary for producing the project outcomes described in the proposal. Grant recipients are required to account for the staff time charged to BWSR grants in order to track the expenditure of grant funds and match to ensure the use of the funds is consistent with applicable State and BWSR requirements. Costs that are unallowable to be charged to BWSR grants include but are not limited to: Bad debts, late payment fees, and investment management fees Giving donations and fundraising Entertainment, gifts, prizes, and decorations Alcohol Interest on loans not authorized under state statute. Loans of BWSR grant funds Lobbying, lobbyists, and political contributions. Eligible Organizations Academic (including but not limited to PreK through grade 12 schools and PreK through grade 12 public schools) Cities Counties Joint Powers Board Non-Profit Soil Water Conservation Districts Townships Tribal Governments Watershed Districts Watershed Management Organizations. For more information, visit BWSR.

The Multipurpose Drainage Management grant program provides financial assistance to model, design, and construct projects and practices that will control water volume and rates to protect infrastructure, improve water quality and related public benefits, and mitigate climate change impacts. Donor Name: Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources State: Minnesota County: All Counties Type of Grant: Grant Deadline: 06/03/2024 Size of the Grant: $500,000 to $1 Million Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned Details: The Multipurpose Drainage Management RFP is now open, with $900,000 in funding available for FY 24. This competitive grant program funds multipurpose drainage management practices, targeting critical pollution source areas to reduce erosion and sedimentation, reduce peak flows and flooding, and improve water quality, while protecting drainage system efficiency and reducing drainage system maintenance for priority Chapter 103E drainage systems. Eligible Projects  Eligible activities can consist of structural practices and projects; non-structural practices and measures, project support, grant management and reporting. Technical and engineering assistance necessary to implement these activities are considered essential and are to be included in the total project or practice cost. Eligibility Criteria This grant program strongly encourages a Chapter 103E drainage authority (County, Joint County Board, or Watershed District) and Soil and Water Conservation District(s) to establish or define a partnership to apply for and use these grant funds. One SWCD or drainage authority partner is eligible to apply on behalf of a partnership, but must verify in the proposal that all the partner(s) are committed to the project. The following entities are eligible: Drainage authorities as defined by Minn. Stat. Chapter 103E Local governments (counties, watershed districts, watershed management organizations, and soil and water conservation districts or local government joint power boards) working under a current State approved and locally adopted local water management plan, comprehensive watershed management plan or soil and water conservation district comprehensive plan. Municipalities are eligible if they: 1) have a water plan that has been approved by a watershed district or a watershed management organization as provided under Minn. Stat. 103B.235; or 2) adopted an approved comprehensive watershed management plan developed under Minn. Stat. 103B.801 Counties in the seven-county metropolitan area are eligible if they have adopted a county groundwater plan under Minn Stat. 103B.255 or county comprehensive plan that has been approved by the Metropolitan Council under Minn. Stat. Chapter 473. For more information, visit BWSR.

The Central Minnesota Community Foundation, through the Thomas A. Ritsche for Youth Fund, supports youth-related programs and projects aimed at reducing crimes against and by youth. The foundation provides funding for program or project support and operational support. Eligible organizations include 501(c)3 Nonprofit Organizations, schools, and government entities. The geographical focus is on Stearns, Benton, and Sherburne Counties. Applications are to be submitted online, with decisions made by a Grant Advisory Committee and final approval by the Board of Directors.

The Central Minnesota Community Foundation, in partnership with the Initiative Foundation, offers the Rural Poverty Fund grants during even years (2020, 2022, 2024, etc.) for planning and implementation of projects or programs aimed at addressing rural poverty in central Minnesota. Eligible projects may include establishing or supplementing emergency and transitional activities, assessing community needs and assets, developing action plans, or providing for project implementation in rural areas. The grant aims to address the specific and immediate needs of rural people in poverty through a variety of identified programs or agency needs. The application period for the next round of funding opens on April 1, 2024, with a deadline of June 30, 2024. Grant decisions are made within 90 days of the application deadline. Decisions on grant applications are made within 90 days of the application deadline.

The Border-to-Border Broadband Development Grant Program and the Low-Density Population Pilot Program, established by the Minnesota legislature in 2014 and continued in 2023, are aimed at promoting broadband infrastructure expansion in Minnesota's unserved or underserved areas. Managed by the State of Minnesota, Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), these programs provide grants to assist broadband providers with the costs of infrastructure installation. The 2024 grant application cycle, announced by DEED, will open on March 12, 2024, with an application deadline of May 10, 2024. Applicants must register and submit applications via DEED’s Grants Management System, following the detailed instructions on DEED's website. The announcement of awards is anticipated in Summer 2024, with project completion required by December 31, 2026. DEED also hosts an information webinar to guide applicants through the application process.

This funding opportunity provides financial support and technical assistance to develop affordable supportive housing for Hennepin County's most vulnerable residents, including those with extremely low incomes, disabilities, and those experiencing homelessness.

This grant provides expedited funding for small arts-related projects and planning initiatives to nonprofit organizations and local government units in southwestern Minnesota, aiming to enhance community arts engagement.

This funding opportunity supports community-driven projects that enhance public spaces and amenities in Hastings, encouraging local partnerships and civic engagement.

The Library Construction Improvement Grant, offered by the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE), supports public library jurisdictions in Minnesota undertaking renovation, construction, and improvement projects. This grant caters to projects aimed at renovating or expanding existing library buildings or constructing new library facilities. The focus is on enhancing library services to meet changing community needs, addressing hazardous conditions, and building new or improved facilities for public use. The grant encourages library development projects that serve the community’s evolving needs while ensuring compliance with accessibility standards.

The Sexual Violence Prevention Grant Program in Minnesota, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Rape Prevention and Education program, aims to prevent sexual violence by enhancing health equity and addressing social determinants of health. The program supports activities in three priority areas: strengthening economic supports for families, creating protective environments, and promoting social norms that protect against violence. The program emphasizes interventions that prevent violence through community and societal level changes and prioritizes projects that address systemic inequalities and promote health equity.