Mankato awards music, social services grants

Mar. 28—MANKATO — Grants awarded by the Mankato City Council this year include a trio of first-time recipients, led by a community garden being added at a low-income housing complex.

More than a dozen applications seeking nearly $50,000 were received for the $16,500 in available Community Grant funds for 2023.

The annual grants, while capped at a relatively modest $5,000 each, have contributed to a number of highly visible local projects centered on the arts, community beautification and social services.

In the past, funds have been targeted toward public murals, including the massive mural on the Ardent Mills silos in Old Town, the annual Pride festival, the popular Songs on the Lawn free summer concerts and the paintings added to many of Mankato's traffic signal boxes.

Art and community beautification were absent from the recipients this year. But music, including free concerts for the public, continued to be a winning formula in the competition.

The Mankato Symphony Orchestra will receive $2,500 — half of the requested amount — to support the production of their season-opening premiere concert on Sept. 20. The Mankato Area Community Band was granted its entire $2,100 request for five free concerts at the Sibley Park bandshell and a patriotic concert in Lincoln Park prior to Independence Day. And ProMusica Minnesota was a winner for a fifth straight competition, receiving the $2,000 it sought for the Chamber Music Festival at Bethany Lutheran College.

Among the newcomers to the winners' circle is the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership, which received $3,000 to help residents of Homestead Apartments grow some of their own food. The 51-year-old affordable housing complex totals 120 units near the intersection of Monks Avenue and Balcerzak Drive northeast of the Minnesota State University campus.

"We propose to use these funds for the community garden project we are working on at Homestead Apartments in Mankato in completing the garden and holding a launch event with residents," according to the nonprofit housing provider's application.

Although SWMHP didn't receive the entire $5,000 it requested, its $3,000 grant was the largest awarded by the City Council Monday night.

House of Hope, Inc., which provides residential and nonresidential treatment for people with mental health and substance abuse issues, will receive half of the $5,000 it sought to assist clients and potential clients in funding their own treatment programs. The funds will be targeted at people with low or no income who are homeless or in danger of homelessness.

And the YWCA was granted $1,900 of $2,500 requested for its program for immigrant and refugee woman and their families.

"With this program, we are able to help young children, aged prenatal to five, and their families get the resources and help they need in order to thrive in their new environment," according to the application.

Finally, Key City Bike received funding for the second straight year — the entire $2,500 requested — for its Kids' Bike Program. The volunteer-run organization, which refurbishes donated bikes, provides bikes and helmets to kids in an effort to reduce barriers to cycling for families.

The city received 13 applications totaling $48,850 in requests this year. While it's a relatively high number, it wasn't necessarily a record, according to City Clerk Renae Kopischke, who coordinates the council's grant programs.

"... It has fluctuated over the years with the number of applicants as well as the total amount requested," Kopischke said.

Among the unsuccessful applicants was The Equity Network's proposal to have a citywide talent contest — "The Beauty of Cultures Music Festival" — which aims to showcase the broad variety of local cultures in Mankato.

Other requests that did not receive grants included applications from a local artist planning an improvisational theater piece, from organizers of a Bethany concert featuring "Southern Minnesota's Real Big Band," for a new floor for the meeting room used by Alcoholics Anonymous members, and for a promotional and educational effort by the Betsy-Tacy Society aimed at boosting literacy.

The review panel, made up of three council members, offered virtually identical comments for each of the denied grants: "The panel is confident that the organization can raise funds through other sources ... ."