After Park City approved the last wave of public service grants in 2023, the city council requested an overhaul of the program to be more transparent and responsive to community needs.
Instead of relying on city staff to grade nonprofit grant applications, the council moved to create a new seven member committee.
The city received 30 nonprofit applications for funding over the next two years.
At the start of this year, the committee held several public meetings to conduct interviews with applicants and form funding recommendations for the city council, which has final approval over the community grants.
Applications were scored based on several variables and were required to meet a demonstrated need that the city council has identified, such as housing or recreation.
The budget for public service funds is just over $600,000, but nonprofits requested nearly $1 million in total, according to a staff report. The committee prioritized nonprofits that had the highest scores on the city’s rubric, meaning some could not receive funding.
The committee’s recommendations include $200,000 for the Christian Center over the next two years for its food pantry and mental health services. It’s the largest amount for any nonprofit that applied.
Peace House, the Park City Seniors, and the Park City Education Foundation could each get $100,000 over the next two years.
Nonprofits including Park City Film, the National Ability Center and Egyptian Theatre were not recommended to get any city money, as the committee considered their proposals nonessential.
The full summary of public service contract recommendations can be found here.
After a discussion and public hearing Thursday, the council could approve the funding recommendations.
