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Council reviews proposal to consolidate community grants with annual application cycle; cultural affairs committee may administer
Summary
A councilmember proposed an annual, project-based community-grants process timed to the hotel-motel tax cycle so nonprofits know funding expectations up front; council agreed to move the proposal to the conference agenda for a written draft.
A Portsmouth councilmember proposed on Feb. 10 that the city adopt an annual application process for community grants to align with the existing hotel-motel tax grant cycle and give nonprofits clearer, up-front expectations about funding.
The proposal would take an average of community grant allocations from the previous three full years (2022–24) and use that projection to allocate a fixed pot of community grant money at the start of each year. The presenter said the grants would be project-based, limited to covering up to 25% of a project’s budget (not including in-kind staffing or utilities as match), require submission of a full project budget and a follow-up report, and be available only to 501(c)(3) organizations operating within the city of Portsmouth.
Staff and council discussed administrative details. City staff advised that hotel-motel tax funds and community grant funds are legally separate “pots” and cannot be blended; if council wants the Cultural Affairs Committee to review community grants it would need separate legislation because existing legislation on the books governs hotel-motel distributions.
Councilmembers suggested varying timelines: some favored late-year application and award (December) to align with budget forecasting, while others preferred a February application window similar to the hotel-motel schedule. The Cultural Affairs Committee meets in March to review hotel-motel applications; multiple councilmembers said that meeting may be a convenient time to present the community-grants idea for committee feedback.
A motion to move the proposal to the conference agenda for a written draft and further review passed by voice vote; staff and the presenting councilmember said they will produce a written version for the next meeting so council can consider specific language.
Why it matters: proponents said an annual, project-based process would give nonprofits clearer expectations and make year-ahead budgeting easier as the city moves out of fiscal watch; staff cautioned that any change to the Cultural Affairs Committee’s duties would require separate legislative action.
