Heart of the City grants looking for downtown initiatives
By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on March 16, 2023.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com Imagine a downtown filled with people who are not just shopping, but dancing, eating, playing and just having a great time.If you can imagine it, then it can happen, and the City of Lethbridge is looking for people with great imaginations who want to take advantage of a grant program that provides financial support for initiatives, events, and programs that make the downtown area come alive with activity.
“We’re looking for new, fresh ideas, things out of the box,” says Lorien Johansen, chairperson of the Heart of the City Committee.
Johansen announced Wednesday at City Hall the opening of the Re-imagine Downtown Activation Grant, which this year will provide a total of $120,000 for individuals and groups interested in coming up with imaginative initiatives, particularly focusing on underutilized downtown spaces.
Johansen said the program aims to build on the success of the previous two years of the Re-imagine grant program, which is to provide new initiatives that will attract people to, and strengthen, the downtown.
Last year, for example, one of the recipients was Hootenanny 2022, which brought to the downtown a free, month-long outdoor theatrical production in Galt Gardens.
Another recipient of grant money was the Lethbridge Jazz Society, which offered a series of live music events in the downtown, showcasing local, provincial, and Canadian artists.
This year applicants can request up to $10,000 per initiative, event, or program, all of which should align with the vision and direction of the Heart of Our City Master Plan.
Proposed initiatives should also present fun and innovative ideas that generate community participation and engagement; transform or breathe new life into vacant or underutilized public or private spaces, making them attractive, inviting, inclusive, and safe; create opportunities for people to safely connect with the downtown neighbourhood; showcase the downtown; enhance the creativity, connection and local identity of the downtown and Lethbridge; encourage links between community, arts, culture, recreation, business, and tourism; and promote environmental sustainability, as well as inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility.
Although the Re-imagine Downtown grant application process closes on April 14, the program aims to support initiatives throughout the year, starting as early as this summer.
With the recent loss to fire of a couple of downtown historical buildings, the Lethbridge Hotel and Bow On Tong building, Johansen said the grant program and resulting initiatives will bring a positive atmosphere to the area and get rid of the negative vibe.
Interested applicants can find the eligibility and evaluation information, as well as the application form by logging onto lethbridge.ca/downtownincentives. Successful applicants will be notified on or before April 28. Follow @DShurtzHerald on Twitter 4
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