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Commission approves distribution of 2025 rural county grant funds to 14 local projects
Summary
Carbon County commission approved the 2025 rural county grant awards recommended by the local economic development board, distributing roughly $200,000 among 14 projects including small-business expansions, workforce and housing-related projects; recipients must provide a 50/50 match and present results to the board.
Carbon County commissioners approved the recommended allocations from the county’s 2025 rural county grant program, directing just over $200,000 to 14 approved applicants from a pool of 24 applications.
Shani Wilson, who presented the program summary to the commission, said the county received about $200,000 from the governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity for the rural county grant program plus roughly $2,000 carried over from the prior year. The applications requested more than $550,000; the economic development board approved 14 awards and fully funded six smaller requests.
Wilson outlined several named awards: CDE Property Management received $5,000 to support rental or renovation of a recovery home in Price; DDMK in Helper received $25,000 for a comprehensive fire suppression system; Flawless Sheeting received $10,000 for expansion; Helper Saturday Vibes received $6,000 for vendor-space expansion and signage; Kilpatrick Fine Art received $18,000 for HVAC improvements and gravel parking; Meaningful Minds — a youth day-care/learning facility — received funding for building upgrades after expanding enrollment and staff; Ori Enterprises received support for a laser cutter and said the company employs about 10 people; Proline Coding in Wellington received funds to expand from one employee to 11 and to add a 100-by-120-foot space; RNA Market in Helper received $15,000 for expansion; Recolab in Kenilworth received funding for boarding-house–style rental rooms to help housing; Sign Edge received $25,000 for a new flatbed digital printer; the county will fund a $3,000 award for a Carbon County winner at the Eastern Utah Economic Summit pitch competition; the Coyotes received $10,000 to expand space and add an ADA bathroom in Wellington; and West Coast Show Support received $10,000 for construction in a basement space.
Wilson and Lane Miller, chair of the local economic development board, described the board’s selection process as deliberately spreading funds across towns and industries and prioritizing projects that create jobs or add to the tax base. The board requires each funded business to present back to the board on results; the program is administered on a reimbursement basis with a required 50/50 match, meaning businesses pay upfront and receive 50% reimbursement upon proof of payment. The packet of awards was moved, seconded and approved by the commission.
Commissioners and board members said the county has seen job growth and increased property values from past rounds of funding. The next application cycle is expected to open in mid-July with a December 1 deadline for applications.
