The Creative Communities = Economic Development (CCED) Grant encourages cultural, economic and governmental sectors to work together to effect community revitalization. This consortium grant will be delivered to two or more nonprofit cultural organizations within a geographic community or region. Applications will be considered from communities/regions with a strong commitment to inter-sector collaboration that seeks to strengthen the cultural assets of their community. Two $50,000 grants will be awarded annually.
- Deadlines:
Mandatory Letter of Interest: February 24, 2012, Application: October 5, 2012
- Maximum grant award $50,000 (with a required 1:1 match)
- Project must take place between December 20, 2012 and December 19, 2013
- Funding will be available after December 20, 2012
About the Creative Communities = Economic Development (CCED) Grant
Maine’s distinct quality of place is its primary economic asset. In addition to its spectacular lands, waters and coastlines, Maine’s picturesque towns and villages containing historic buildings and working waterfronts also contribute to Maine’s palpable charm. All of these characteristics have attracted artists to Maine for decades and they continue to do so. The presence of artists, art organizations, and art-related businesses that have come into being as a result of this rich artistic and cultural heritage, has contributed significantly to Maine’s quality of place.
The Maine Arts Commission is offering this new grant program to activate the concept that Maine’s quality of place is as an economic asset. The CCED grant is designed to function locally to meaningfully support dialogue and partnership between municipalities and the cultural sector regarding the economic development of their communities. CCED will provide the cultural sector with significant funds to contribute to mutually agreed upon plans and initiatives that stimulate the local economy, strengthen the role of arts and culture, and enhance their community’s quality of place.
Successful applications will come from communities that have vibrant cultural nonprofits. The communities themselves must be poised for growth and engaged in economic and community planning as well as development using other funding sources. They will include an active network of involved citizens including youth and elected leaders in a comprehensive revitalization effort.
The nonprofit arts organizations are expected to plan and oversee project direction, management and implementation side by side with their municipalities. It is anticipated that the CCED project will have a designated part-time coordinator to communicate with the public, partners, artists and others involved with the project. This coordinator should be seen as a “neutral” member of the community equally adept at relating to the governance and artistic sides of the equation. The coordinator will function as a liaison to the municipality or other agencies receiving community building funds.
Examples of Successful Grants
Waterville Main Street
This grant supported Waterville's Converge & Create brand through asset based marketing, incentives for artist and creative business attraction and new cooperative programming.
Waterfall Arts
This grant supported the Belfast Creative Coalition: bringing together arts, cultural partners, economic partners to unite, brand and market the greater Belfast community as a vibrant arts, cultural and local foods destination.
A consortium of at least two nonprofit cultural organizations from the same community or region, one of which will serve as lead applicant and will retain fiscal oversight and is:
- A nonprofit organization, legally established in the State of Maine,
- and has tax exempt status 501(c)(3) from the Internal Revenue Service, and
- has completed and filed all final reports required for previous Maine Arts Commission grants
Consortiums are encouraged to have proven, significant partnerships with community development initiatives such as Main Street Maine, the Orton Foundation, Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) or Land for Maine’s Future.
CCED grants are viewed as grants to foster the development of the creative economy of the community as a whole, rather than to a single organization.
An applicant must demonstrate a fiscal structure that allows them to legally and responsibly utilize grant funds. The consortium must provide a minimum of a 1:1 cash match or in-kind match. This demonstrates the consortium’s ability to take on the project. This match must be documented as part of the application package.
Letters of interest and full applications will be reviewed by a panel consisting of the staff of private foundations, members of the Maine Arts Commission’s Community Arts Committee and a representative from the Department of Economic Development.
The review process and delivery of funds may take up to four months. This may mean that grant funds are used to reimburse costs incurred for the project, and it is suggested that applicants plan accordingly.
Successful applicants will have a strong, if not predominant cultural component and demonstrate that they are poised to work with all aspects of community planning and development. They should be on the precipice of redevelopment with culture as a central player and demonstrate that these funds will function as a “tipping point”. They will show:
- A high level of commitment from community leadership and community partners, with the willingness and flexibility to undertake innovative, experimental processes
- Evidence that the collaboration is strongly supported by the leaders of the partnership
- Evidence that the collaboration has or will grow out of shared experiences and commonly perceived needs. It should also show that it will strengthen an understanding of the importance of building on the practices, skills and priorities that come most naturally to the partners.
- That the collaborators shall seek to serve populations beyond their own immediate constituencies and yield benefits for the entire community
- A commitment to a high level of citizen involvement, including youth
- A commitment to putting values and vision into action, plans and/or policies
- A commitment to evaluating and sharing results of the project
- The ability to identify and contribute local in-kind and financial resources toward a match to the funding
Required Application Materials
To be submitted through eGRANT:
When preparing your documents for submission, all word documents must be saved as .doc or .rtf files and follow this sample naming convention: Organization_TitleOfDocument.rtf (example: MaineArtsCommission_resume.doc or MaineArtsCommission_narrative.rtf).
- eGRANT Application
Applicants are required to upload the following documents through eGRANT.
- Application Budget Form and Detail (form below) providing evidence of 1:1 cash and/or in-kind match. No substitutions for the budget form are allowed.
- Letters of Support from consortium partners (please combine all in one document before uploading.).
- Letters of Support from municipal government representatives (please combine all in one document before uploading.).
- Resume(s) of the principals in the project (please combine all in one document before uploading.).
- Application Narrative (form below)
Clear, specific responses to each of the project description statements, addressed sequentially and numbered. Responses can not exceed 5000 words. The project description is the central element of the grant request.
To be mailed to the Maine Arts Commission, 193 State Street, Augusta, Maine 04333-0025:
- Copy of the most recent fiscal year income summary or activity statement for lead partner (applicant). Please use accrual accounting.
- Assurances Form (form below) with original signature of an authorizing official. Please mark with name of applicant.
- Vendor Form (form below)
This is information used by the Treasury to generate a check if the grant is awarded. Applicants should be sure to indicate the address the check should be sent to. You must mail the form with your signature to our office. Faxed copies are not accepted.
Each applicant must speak with Donna McNeil, director at 207/287-2726, donna.mcneil@maine.gov or TTY/NexTalk 877/887-3878, about the project concept before submitting a letter of interest. Failure to do so will disqualify the application.
Letters of Interest
Applicants who have been invited to proceed must submit:
- A letter indicating interest in submitting an application, with preliminary indications of how the money will be used and the relationship between the consortium and municipal government. (No more than 500 words)
- A letter of support from municipal government
Please submit by email to kathy.shaw@maine.gov by 5:00 pm, E.S.T on March 8, 2011.
The review panel will select a pool of potential applicants from the letters submitted, and site visits will be scheduled during the summer of 2010. During this period, the Maine Arts Commission will also offer application assistance.
Full Application
Applicants who have been invited to submit a final application are required to apply through the Maine Arts Commission e-GRANT system. E-GRANT will accept applications until 11:59 pm, E.S.T. on October 7, 2010; however, agency staff is only available to answer questions until 5:00 pm, E.S.T. Because of the volume of e-GRANT submissions on the day of any grant deadline, we strongly recommend submitting the grant 24 hours before the deadline.
Applicants who are unable to apply through e-GRANT must contact Kathy Ann Shaw at 207/287-2750, 877/887-3878 TTY/NexTalk User ID: kathy.shaw or kathy.shaw@maine.gov to discuss an alternative prior to applying. Alternative submissions will not be accepted without prior authorization.
The agency will not accept late or incomplete applications under any circumstance.
Grant information is available in large print format by request. All Maine Arts Commission programs are accessible to people with disabilities. All programs funded by the Maine Arts Commission must also be accessible.