WILMINGTON — The first Legacy Fund grants are expected to be awarded May 22.
The Clinton County Legacy Fund Committee will decide on these grants that are intended to benefit the local community and its residents. About $500,000 is anticipated to be available for this grant cycle.
The Clinton County Legacy Fund consists of money the county received from selling county-owned Clinton Memorial Hospital.
Applications from local governments or nonprofits can be submitted starting Feb. 14. There will be links on the Clinton County website and on the Clinton County Foundation’s website to access the application.
The deadline for applying is tentatively set for April 17, said Clinton County Commissioner Mike McCarty.
Clinton County commissioners have drawn up a spending plan for Legacy Fund grants. It has as a guidepost, in the first year anyway, that 60 percent of allocated dollars will go to local governments. Examples of local governments are local townships, villages, fire and EMS districts, and the city of Wilmington.
The spending plan commissioners have come up with is meant to give the Legacy Fund Committee a framework, yet also give the committee some flexibility for the awarding of grants.
The three commissioners agreed on setting as guideposts the following categories: 60 percent for local governments; 21 percent for large grants (defined as more than $10,000) to charities/nonprofits; 6 percent for small grants (defined as less than $10,000) to charities/nonprofits; and the balance to administrative fees, believed to be higher the first year due to branding.
Commissioners have said the specific percentage figures above are intended as guidance to the Legacy Fund Committee, while at the same time it’s important the committee not be locked inside a box when deciding on grant awards.
Legacy Fund grant dollars cannot be used for an organization’s personnel costs.
The five people who will select which applicants will receive grants are Air Transport Services Group CEO Joe Hete, Clinton County Commissioner Mike McCarty, former Southern Ohio Educational Service Center Supt. Tony Long, Michelle Morrison who has served as Port William mayor as well as the Clinton County Regional Planning Commission, and retired banker Janet Dixon.
In the first year, there will be only one grant cycle, McCarty said.
The term LEGACY in Clinton County Legacy Fund can be taken as an acronym that stands for Local Endowment for Governments And Charities for Years.
Reach Gary Huffenberger at 937-556-5768.
