RCO Application Webinar Thursday, February 15, 2018 at 9:30 am

RCO Application Webinar Thursday, February 15, 2018 at 9:30 am

Join the RCO's application webinar from your office or home. Do you need funding for parks, trails, or boating access sites? Maybe you are interested in preserving farmland, forestland, or habitat conservation areas? If so, we have good news. RCO is hosting a FREE webinar to review the programs offered, program schedules, and the requirements for submitting an application.


 

New Opportunities for State Trails and Park Grants Targeting Underserved or Distressed Communities

When the state begins accepting grant applications on February 15 to build parks, trails, and boating facilities, it will offer a new way for communities to afford the matching resources required to qualify for these grants.

The Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO)’s new policy allows some communities to reduce their match from 50 percent of the project’s cost to as low as 10 percent. Visit the RCO Web site to see if you qualify.

“This is a new opportunity for communities,” said Kaleen Cottingham, director of the Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO), which administers the grants. “We listened to local leaders who told us that they often can’t build community parks or trails because they can’t raise the required match.”

The reduced match applies only to certain types of projects in the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program, which is the state’s largest grant program for local parks, trails, and water access areas; and in the Youth Athletic Facilities program, which funds ball fields, skate parks, swimming pools, and other outdoor parks.

The idea for a reduced match was a recommendation of a program review requested by the legislature to modernize the 25-year-old Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program.

RCO is offering grants in the following categories:

  • Boating–Grants to acquire, develop, and renovate facilities including launching ramps, and guest moorage and support facilities for motorized boats and other watercraft.

  • Parks–Grants to buy land and develop parks, ball fields, sports courts, outdoor swimming pools, and waterfront access areas for the public.

  • Shooting Ranges–Grants to buy land and grants to develop and renovate firearm ranges, archery training, and practice facilities.

  • Trails–Grants to maintain and develop trails.

  • Farmland Preservation–Grants to preserve valuable farmland. 

  • Forestland Preservation–Grants to lease or buy voluntary land preservation agreements (also called conservation easements) for forests to ensure they remain available for timber production in the future.

  • Wildlife Habitat Conservation–Grants to conserve significant natural areas or habitat for plants and animals. This includes grants to protect areas along streams and waterways.

Grant application due dates vary between May 1, 2018 and November 1, 2018. For more information on grants visit the RCO Website.

Questions? Find your location on this map and contact the grants manager for your area.


Share this post:

Comments on "RCO Application Webinar Thursday, February 15, 2018 at 9:30 am"

Comments 0-5 of 0

Please login to comment