Community service grants announced

Less than half the local nonprofit groups who requested grant money from Carson City were turned down Thursday when supervisors divvied up $100,000 set aside for organizations that do good works in the community.

Nineteen organizations, ranging from arts groups to conservation districts, applied for money. The city funded 11.

The $100,000, which is in addition to $190,000 in ongoing funding the city already splits between 10 local community service groups, is $15,000 more than the city handed out last year.

All of the increase, and then some, went to the Carson City Community Council on Youth. The CCOY, which received $38,500 in one-shot funding and $110,000 altogether, funnels money to other community groups with programs aiding local youth.

Only one group, the Carson City Symphony, that wasn't funded last year received anything this year. The city even trimmed its list of recipients by one - the library. Last year, the Carson City Library received $2,000 in city grant money and zero this year.

The library had already received a blow earlier this month, when its entire request for supplemental funds from next year's budget was denied. The library had asked for $464,000 - far more than any other city department - when the city had just $400,000 to spread around.

City Manager Linda Ritter said libraries often fall to the bottom of the priority list in tight budget years when competing with crucial services like law enforcement or sanitation.

Organizations that were awarded more money than last year include the Brewery Arts Center, CCOY, HealthSmart Mental Health Coalition, Nevada Rural Counties Retired and Senior Volunteer Program and Gardeners Reclaiming our Waysides.

Those that received grants but in smaller amounts than last year include the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District and the Community Counseling Center.

n Contact reporter Cory McConnell at cmcconnell@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1217.

City grants

The following is a breakdown of which community service nonprofit group got how much money from a $290,000 sum the city divvied between local agencies on Thursday.

• Gardeners Reclaiming our Waysides, a group lobbying for the first part of the Carson City Freeway to be landscaped, received $8,000 - $500 more than last year.

• HealthSmart Mental Health Coalition, working to improve the efficiency of identifying and treating mental illness in Carson City, received $7,500 - $2,500 more than last year.

• Carson City Community Counseling Center, a substance abuse counseling and treatment service, received $12,000 - $3,000 less than last year. The counseling center also gets $35,000 a year from the city for a total of $47,000.

• The Community Council on Youth received $38,500. CCOY is also given $71,500 in ongoing funding for a total of $110,000. CCOY gives much of its funding to other local nonprofits.

• The Nevada Rural Counties Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, which utilizes senior volunteers to help elderly people stay independent, took in $8,500 - $3,500 more than last year. RSVP also gets about $30,000 in ongoing funding.

• Nevada Hispanic Services equaled last year's grant of $5,000. NHS, an advocate and liaison for Carson City's Hispanic community, also receives $21,000 in ongoing appropriations for a total of $26,000.

• The Nevada Tahoe Conservation District received $2,000 - half of last year's grant.

• The Carson Valley Conservation District also took in $2,000 - same as last year. The CVCD also gets $2,000 in ongoing funds for a total of $4,000.

• The Brewery Arts Center received $7,500, and gets $5,000 in ongoing funds for a total of $12,500.

• The Carson City Symphony received $1,000. It got nothing last year.

• Nevada Day Inc., which puts on the annual Nevada Day festivities, was awarded $8,000 - $5,000 more than last year.