Blaine allocates $192,500 from gambling revenue to 12 local nonprofits

The Blaine City Council on Feb. 3 recognized a group of local nonprofit organizations and announced allocations totaling $192,500 drawn from the city’s share of lawful gambling net profits.

Director Zimmerman said the allocation comes from a statutorily authorized share of net profits collected from lawful gambling and that the city’s review process resulted in the $192,500 recommendation to multiple nonprofit recipients. “As as the mayor alluded to, this is an annual tradition that the city council has and it's an opportunity to acknowledge, various nonprofit organizations that that benefit the community,” Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman told the council the city collects 10% of net profits from lawful gambling organizations and then reinvests those dollars back into the community through an application and scoring process. He said the council participates in scoring and budgeting to identify recommended recipients; the city’s process requires no separate motion at this presentation because the payments will be made as scheduled bills.

The city named 12 recipients for the allocation: Alexandria House; Anoka County Compadurate Composite Squadron Civil Air Patrol; Beyond the Yellow Ribbon; Family Promise; Hope for the Community Food Shelf; Hope for Youth; Impact Services; the Minnesota 100 Club; the Salvation Army Food Shelf; SBM Fire; Stepping Stone Emergency Housing; and Way of the Lord Food Shelf. The total amount to be allocated to those organizations is $192,500.

Mayor Sanders presented a ceremonial check and invited recipients forward for photos. The mayor also briefly recognized former Mayor Ryan, who attended the meeting.