The City of Fort St. John is proposing a new community grants policy for their municipality, and a policy presentation was provided to city council during their Dec. 11 meeting.
If formally adopted, the new policy would replace three existing policies, which defines eligibility for fee for service grants, program grants, permissive property tax grants, financial assistance for capital projects or event, and conference sponsorships.
The proposal was presented by the city’s Corporate Officer, Bonnie McCue, noting it was necessary to review current policies due to an increase in the number of grants offered by the city.
“The intent of introducing this new policy is to have all community grant information within one document, making it a resource for administration and applicants,” said McCue. “It is intended to streamline and clarify the process.”
Funding for the grants comes from an agreement with the North Peace Community Foundation, an initiative launched in partnership with the City of Fort St. John, Petronas Energy Canada, Peace River Regional District, the District of Taylor, and Doig River First Nation, which was established to support community service organizations.
Fee for service grants are currently administered by the city, while program and permissive tax grants are administered by the foundation.
The new policy adds grant categories, defines maximum allowances per grant, in addition to defining eligibility and funding limitations.
Grants would be categorized into five types under the new policy - fee for service, grants in aid administered by the foundation, conference or event sponsorships, micro grants, and partnership grants.
It’s proposed the city’s economic development department would administer conference or event sponsorship grants, with approval from the CAO. Any grant over $3,000 would be presented to council for approval, explained McCue.
