Grant Workshops to be Held in May to Help Local Officials and Parks Departments with 2008 Application Process
Nashville, Tenn. – The Department of Environment and Conservation’s Division of Recreation Educational Services is hosting seven regional workshops in the month of May. The workshops are designed to help local government officials and parks and recreation departments understand the application process for the 2008 grant cycle for three programs.The process for submitting applications for three grant programs will be reviewed:
Local Parks and Recreation Fund (LPRF) Grants provide funding for the purchase of lands for parks, natural areas, greenways and the purchase of land for recreational facilities. Funds may also be used for trail development and capital projects in parks, natural areas and greenways. Each county government and incorporated municipality is allowed to submit one grant application per cycle. Cities and counties may apply jointly for one project in addition to applying for one city or county project, but a government that currently has an open project in this category of programs is not eligible to reapply until the open project is completed.
Land and Water Conservation Funds (LWCF) Grants provide matching grants to states and through the state to local governments and state agencies that provide recreation and parks for the acquisition and development of public outdoor recreation areas and facilities.
Recreational Trails Program (RTP) Grants are provided through the federal Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act. The Department of Environment and Conservation administers this program in Tennessee, and the grants may be used for non-routine maintenance and restoration of existing trails, development and rehabilitation trailside or trailhead facilities such as restrooms, shelters and parking lots, construction of new trails and acquisition of land for recreational trails or corridors. Federal, state and local government agencies may apply.
The schedule for grant workshops is as follows. All workshops will take place from 10 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in their respective time zones:
– Tuesday, May 8 – Paris Civic Center, Paris (Henry County)
– Wednesday, May 9 – College Hill Center, Brownsville (Haywood County)
– Tuesday, May 15 – Morristown City Hall, Morristown (Hamblen County)
– Wednesday, May 16 – Farragut Town Hall, Farragut (Knox Co.)
– Thursday, May 17 – Athens Regional Park Conference Center, Athens (McMinn County)
– Tuesday, May 22 – Coffee County Executive Plaza, Manchester (Coffee County)
– Wednesday, May 23 – Goodlettsville Community Center, Goodlettsville (Davidson County)
To learn more about grants available from Environment and Conservation’s Division of Recreation Educational Services and the eligibility and application requirements of the various grant programs listed above, please visit www.tdec.net/recreation/grants.shtml.
For more information about the upcoming workshops, contact Bonnie Gamble at (615) 532-0750.