LOCK HAVEN — Sixteen local nonprofit organizations and municipalities will split $50,000 in grants through the county’s Tourism and Recreation Grant program.
Julie Brennan, tourism director with the Clinton County Economic Partnership, announced the names of the winners who will share the grant during Thursday’s Clinton County commissioners meeting.
The grants — a collaborative effort between the Clinton County Economic Partnership’s Tourist and Promotion Agency, the Clinton County commissioners and the county planning department — are designed to promote, develop and expand local tourist and recreational assets and attract visitors to Clinton County, Brennan said.
In making the announcement, Brennan said the grants committee is excited to help jump-start the efforts of local groups as they work to resume a number of activities that, due to the pandemic, were unable to be held last year.
“Many major events and the smaller fundraising efforts that support them were put on hold last year, so this year’s grant program is as critical as it’s ever been in helping these organizations get back on their feet,” said Brennan.
The 2021 Tourism/Recreation Grant recipients follow:
–Chestnut Grove Recreation Authority – $1,000 for the planned Chestnut Grove sports complex.
–City of Lock Haven – $5,000 in support of the Free Outdoor Summer Concert Series.
–Clinton County Arts Council – $4,500, promotional support for the LH JAMS Festival.
–Clinton County Fair and Speedway – $6,000 in promotional support.
–Clinton County Historical Society – $3,500 for the Wine in the Wilds wine tasting festival.
–Downtown Lock Haven, Inc. – $2,000 in promotional support for activities such as the downtown pedestrian mall and Hometown Heroes Banner Program.
–Kettle Creek Music Festival – $3,000 in promotional support.
–Lock Haven Area Jaycees – $5,000 in promotional support for the annual Labor Day Regatta.
–Millbrook Playhouse – $5,000 in promotional support for the Bands for the Barn live music event.
–Mill Hall Borough – $2,900, support for the community pool.
–Piper Aviation Museum – $1,500 in advertising/promotional support.
–ReVibe Outdoors – $4,000 in support for the Little Loggers Trail Fest.
–Sentimental Journey to Cub Haven Fly-In – $2,000 in support of the Fly-In.
–Tiadaghton Elm Canoe Race Committee – $3,000 in support for the U.S. Canoe Association national race in Lock Haven this summer;
–Wayne Township – $1,000 in support of an informational kiosk for along the Bald Eagle Valley Trail, a project in collaboration with the Friends of the Bald Eagle Valley Trail.
–Western Clinton Sportsmen’s Association – $600 to support purchase of a promotional canopy.
Brennan said the projects and activities associated with the 16 grant recipients represent an overall investment of more than $163,000 into the Clinton County community.
“We received a total of 25 grant applications this year, requesting more than $113,000, so there were some difficult decisions made,” said Brennan, noting that, unfortunately, grant requests always exceed available funds.
Funding for the grant program comes from the county’s hotel tax paid by those who stay overnight in local lodging establishments. The tax is passed through to the Tourist Promotion Agency.
To date, grants totaling $280,000 have been doled out through the program to help organizations draw visitors into the county, Brennan said, describing the grant program as a reimbursable grant program where the organizations spend the money and then the county reimburses them.
Organizations and municipalities with questions about the grant program can contact Brennan at 570-748-5782 or tourismdirector@clintoncountyinfo.com, or Gabe Caprio in the Clinton County Planning Office at 570-893-4080, ext. 3 or gcaprio@clintoncountypa.com.
Clinton County Planner Katie deSilva updated the commissioners on several items, including the CHIRP hospitality grant, the ERAP grant and the Peale Avenue bridge construction project in Mill Hall.
deSilva said SEDA-COG has receive 10 applications for the hospitality grant from Clinton County businesses to date. She said 61 applications have been received by the Clinton County Housing Authority for $2.5 million in rental assistance and the coalition has already made payment on a few.
As for the Peale Bridge, deSilva said there were 14 bidders for the project and 13 came in under budget. The winning contract was for $1,284,842 from Glenn O. Hawbaker and is 24 percent under the estimate, which will decrease the county’s share of the project cost. Commissioner Miles Kessinger noted that the county has set aside money for their portion of the project and a decrease in the cost is good news.
In other business Thursday, the commissioners:
— Confirmed the resignation of Ron Cryder, part-time security guard in the sheriff’s department; hired Ena Foreman as full time 9-1-1 dispatcher trainee at a salary of $28,439, and hired Alexis Arkwright as full tie Agricultural Resource Conservationist at the Clinton County Conservation District at a salary of $36,297.
— Approved two grant applications to the PA Commission on Crime and Delinquency, one for financial support of $23,168 for anticipated court costs for a capital case and the other for financial support of $34,802 toward adult probation personnel costs.
— Approved a five-year lease with De Lage Landen Financial Services to provide a color copier for the courts at a cost of $329 per month;, and a five-year lease with Marco Technologies to provide a Sharp black and white copier for the Clinton County Correctional Facility at a cost of $354 per month; a 3.83 percent increase in the food service operating agreement between the county and Aramark Correctional Services, effective April 20, 2021 through April 19, 2022.
Snyder and fellow commissioners Kessinger and Angela Harding expressed some disappointment that the state Department of Health had not selected Clinton County to house a regional vaccination site.
Harding said Centre County has been chosen for the regional center, but had no details.
“Residents shouldn’t have to go outside the county to get vaccinations,” Snyder remarked, adding as he has in the past that “the biggest problem is supply.”