Cane River National Heritage Area, Inc. (CRNHA) released the application and guidelines for its 2016-2017 Competitive Grant Program. The deadline to apply is Thursday, Sept. 1 at 5 p.m. CST. In its 18th cycle, the CRNHA grant program provides funding to individual, local, regional, state and out of state entities for projects that contribute to the conservation of the Cane River region’s unique historic, cultural and natural resources.

Since its inception in 1999, the competitive grant program has provided over $5 million in funding to local preservation and heritage development projects. 2016 funding is available for the following types of grants:

• General Competitive Grants: This is the main granting program for CRNHA. The award range for competitive grants is $1,500 – $10,000. Applicants must complete and submit a copy of the grant application form.

• Small Request Grants: Requests may be submitted for funding of small projects. The award limit for small request grants is $1,500 or less. Applicants seeking a small request grant must complete and submit a copy of the grant application form.

• Special Project Grants: CRNHA may provide funding for 1 to 2 Special Projects per fiscal year. These are high-level, multi-phase (year) preservation, construction or development projects with a budget of over $10,000. Special Project Grant applicants must arrange for consultation with the program director prior to submitting an application. Special Project Grant applicants will use the same application form and guidelines as the Competitive Grant Program.

Viable projects in each category must show a solid relation to preservation, interpretation and promotion of the region’s resources with an emphasis on establishing partnerships; produce a one-to-one match of funds from a non-federal source; demonstrate a clear benefit to the public; and have a significant impact on the Cane River National Heritage Area.

All Competitive and Small Request Grant projects must be undertaken and completed within the fiscal year (Oct. 1, 2016-Sept. 30, 2017).

Applications are available on-line at www.CaneRiverNHA.org/grant-program or for pick-up at CRNHA main office located at 1115 Washington St. in Natchitoches as of July 12. All awards and funding are based on funds availability.

For questions, please contact Keilah Spann, Director of Heritage Programs at 318.356.5555 orKSpann@CaneRiverNHA.org