Council sets up $70,000 community assistance grant round, names ad hoc reviewers

The Cathedral City Council on March 12 approved staff's plan to advertise the FY25-26 general fund community assistance grant program and a concurrent $20,000 public arts grant program.

Financial Services Director Kevin Biersack said the city expects to offer $70,000 in community assistance grants and $20,000 for public-arts programming in the upcoming budget. Staff recommended individual grant requests range from $1,000 to $10,000 (public-arts awards will be $1,000 to $5,000) and said last year the council awarded nine grants totaling $70,000. Applications will be advertised on the city website and local media and are to be submitted electronically. Staff said award recommendations will be made by an ad hoc subcommittee, and the council confirmed Council Member Lam and Council Member Gutierrez as the review subcommittee.

Why it matters: The program distributes discretionary general-fund support to local nonprofits and arts organizations that serve Cathedral City residents. Staff said preference will be given to applicants serving underserved populations and asked that previous awardees document prior use of funds before applying for new grants.

Key dates: Staff plans to post the application on Friday the 14th and accept submissions for five weeks. Recommendations will be reviewed in May and return to council for approval on June 25; awardees will be notified no later than July 1.

Council action: The council voted to proceed with advertising and implementing the program; the motion carried unanimously.

Implementation: Staff described eligibility requirements (501(c)(3) nonprofits or government entities, local service to Cathedral City residents required) and the review process by the ad hoc subcommittee. The Public Arts Commission will manage the $20,000 arts grant program and reduced its maximum award to $5,000 to increase the number of potential awards.