FY 2012 Promotional/Special Event Grant Program Guidelines
Program Overview
As part of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2012 budget, the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) Board has authorized $40,000 to help fund promotional and/or special events within the Greater Frenchtown/ Southside Community Redevelopment Area and the Downtown District Community Redevelopment Area ($20,000 for each redevelopment district). The purpose of the program is to provide support to special events that promote the goals and objectives of the Greater Frenchtown/Southside Community Redevelopment Plan or the Downtown District Community Redevelopment Plan. Funds are available for not-for-profit organizations that will host promotional or special events within either of the two redevelopment areas. In addition, the following limits apply to the grant funds: (1) the maximum award to any applicant under the program is $5,000 in any fiscal year and (2) events must occur within fiscal year 2012 (October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012). Grant funds shall only be provided for events occurring after grant applications have been approved and the recipient has entered into a grant agreement with the CRA.
Organizations wishing to receive funding assistance for their event must submit the CRA Promotional/Special Events Grant Program application form to the CRA for review and ranking by CRA staff. Application forms are available on-line or from the CRA, located in the City's Department of Economic and Community Development, Renaissance Center, 3rd Floor, 435 North Macomb Street. The procedures for submitting the application form are outlined below. The Executive Director of the CRA has the authority to approve all funding requests.
Application Process
An original-signed application and four (4) copies with supporting documentation must be delivered between the hours of 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Eastern Daylight Time, starting on Thursday, September 1, 2011 and will remain open until all funds are committed or Friday, August 31, 2012, whichever comes first (the Application Period).
Applications will be accepted by delivery in person, US Postal Service, or private courier service at the Department of Economic and Community Development office on the third floor of the Renaissance Building at 435 North Macomb Street. The date of receipt for all applications will be the date/time stamp of receipt provided by Department of Economic and Community Development staff when the application is delivered to the receptionist desk on the third floor of the Renaissance Building. Applications sent electronically will NOT be accepted.
Funds shall be made available to applicants on a first-come, first-served basis during the Application Period (as determined by the date/time stamp of receipt at the Department of Economic and Community Development office), provided the CRA staff review determines that all the application criteria are met. The CRA reserves the right to reject any application that is not substantially complete, or it does not find to be consistent with the goals and objectives of the applicable Redevelopment Plan. Grant funds shall be delivered to the successful applicant after the event, unless otherwise approved by the CRA Executive Director.
In the event that two or more applications are received at the same time (as indicated by the date/time stamp) and the remaining fund balance cannot support approval of all these applications at the amounts requested, CRA staff will rank the applications using the ranking criteria described in these guidelines. In these cases, the grant funds will be awarded to the organization the CRA Executive Director determines best meets the Criteria for Evaluation and Ranking of Applications below.
The CRA Executive Director reserves the right to make an award for less than the amount requested by an applicant.
Prohibited Used of Funds
CRA funds for promotional and special events may not be used for the following purposes:
- Religious or political promotional/special events*
- Promotional or special events that are inconsistent with the goals and objectives of the CRA, the City of Tallahassee, or Leon County*
- Promotional or special events sponsored by the State of Florida, local governments or universities
- Events that are not open to the public, either for free or for a fee
- Operating expenses of the hosting organization, including salaries or other compensation
- Prize money, awards, plaques or certificates
- Tangible personal property
- Interest payments or reduction of deficits or loans
- Travel expenses
- Alcoholic beverages
* The determination of whether or not a promotional/special event is religious or political, or is inconsistent with the goals and objectives of the CRA lies solely with the CRA Executive Director.
Criteria for Evaluating and Ranking of Applications
Although grant funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, CRA staff will review all grant applications received during the Application Period to determine if they meet the grant objectives and requirements.
To be considered for funding, the location of the proposed event must be in either the Greater Frenchtown/Southside Community Redevelopment Area or the Downtown District Community Redevelopment Area. If the location of the event is outside either of these redevelopment areas, it is NOT eligible to apply for grant funds under this program.
If CRA staff determines the proposed event will not promote the goals and objectives of the Greater Frenchtown/Southside Community Redevelopment Plan or the Downtown District Community Redevelopment Plan, a recommendation of No Funding will be made to the CRA Executive Director.
Provided below is a brief overview of how responses, questions and information requests contained in the CRA Promotional/Special Events Grant Program application form will be evaluated by the CRA staff.
- 1. Support of event by business and community groups in the redevelopment area - preference will be given to events that have been coordinated with, and are supported by, business and community groups within the redevelopment area where the event will take place;
- Total Anticipated Attendance - preference will be given to those events with higher anticipated attendance figures;
- Anticipated Hotel/Motel/Bed and Breakfast Bookings - preference will be given to those events that will result in more anticipated hotel/motel/bed and breakfast bookings within either redevelopment district;
- Cost of Attending the Event - preference will be given to those events where all or a majority of activities (75 percent or more) are available at no cost to the attendees;
- Promotion of the goals and objectives of the Greater Frenchtown/ Southside Community Redevelopment Plan or the Downtown District Redevelopment Plan - the event must be consistent with the redevelopment plan of the redevelopment area where the event will be held. A link to the two redevelopment plans is provided below:
- Greater Frenchtown/Southside Community Redevelopment Plan
- Downtown District Community Redevelopment Plan
- Funding Sources - preference will be given to those events with a higher percentage of funding from sources other than the CRA;
- Past Events - if the event has been held in the past, those events with the highest levels of success and most detailed documentation, including the expenditure of funds, will be given preference;
- New Events - if the event is new, those with goals that are the most clearly identified with the goals and objectives of the respective redevelopment plans, and have anticipated outcomes that are well defined, will be given preference; and
- Seed Funding - applications that demonstrate the funding provided by the CRA will allow the event to become self-sustaining in future years, and not require further CRA funding, will be given preference.
Notification of Funding Decision
Applicants will be advised on the status of their application (accepted, rejected, awaiting outcome of decisions on applications received prior to the applicants) within ten (10) working days of the CRA's receipt of the application. Notification will be initially made via email or telephone, to be followed by a written notification.
Grant Agreement and Post-Event Reporting
Grant funds shall only be provided for events occurring after grant applications have been approved and the recipient has entered into a grant agreement with the CRA outlining the various grant requirements. All grant recipients will also be required to submit a post-event report documenting the detailed expenditure of CRA and other funds and providing a self-assessment regarding the success of the event, including a comparison of the original grant application criteria with the final results of the event. This post-event report will be due to the CRA within 30 days of the event's conclusion.
It is the policy of the CRA to release funds awarded under this program to organizations after the post-event report has been submitted and approved by CRA staff. This allows the CRA to verify that the terms and conditions presented in the recipient's grant application and grant agreement have been satisfied. However, the CRA does recognize that some organizations may need earlier access to the funds. In those instances, approved applicants must submit a request for earlier payment, which demonstrates awarding the CRA funds after submission of the post-event report will cause an undue hardship on the organization and negatively affect their ability to host the event. The hardship letter can be included with the application, but will not be considered in evaluating an application. The CRA Executive Director will review and approve, if appropriate, early payment requests.
Contact Information
If you have any questions about the FY 2012 CRA Promotional/Special Events Grant Program, please contact one of the CRA staff members listed below:
Rick McCraw, 850-891-6459
Sherri Baker, 850-891-6464
Rick Fausone, 850-891-6463