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Commissioners approve $92,500 in business grants and move $80,000 to seed next GRAMA cycle
Summary
The Board approved 23 awards totaling $92,500 from the first Baker County Economic Development GRAMA cycle and authorized an $80,000 transfer between county accounts to seed the next grant round.
Baker County commissioners approved awards for the first grant cycle of the Baker County Economic Development GRAMA on Jan. 8, allocating $92,500 across 23 business recipients, and approved a transfer of $80,000 to fund an upcoming second cycle.
Presentation: Economic Development staff and the GRAMA review committee — including Doug Gaslin, Jeff Nelson and county economic developer Brian Twite — described the fall cycle results and a second recommendation to transfer funds from account 318 to 218 to seed the next round, which will open in April.
Why it matters: the GRAMA program provides small grants to support existing and new county businesses. The fund has a $10,000 per‑applicant maximum; most recipients in the first cycle received substantially less than the maximum. Staff said the grant support has been well‑received by small business applicants and that historic transient room tax (TRT) receipts and other local revenue sources supply the fund.
Board action: commissioners voted to approve the 23 awards totaling $92,500 and to transfer $80,000 from the identified account into the special projects account to ensure funding for the next cycle. Commissioners also discussed the program’s application and reporting process; staff said recipients complete project steps before receiving final disbursement and that review is anonymous during scoring.
Next steps: awards will be administered to recipients per the program terms. Staff will manage the transfer and prepare materials for the April cycle.
