Larchwood, Iowa — If your group or organization in the greater tri-state area needs funding for a smaller project, you might want to take note.
Lyon County Riverboat Foundation Executive Director Ken Kerkvliet tells us the foundation is announcing their 2025 Mini Grant program. Details about this program can be found on the Foundation website at www.lyoncountyriverboatfoundation.org. Applications are being accepted as of this Monday, February 10th and are due no later than March 28th, 2025, with grants being awarded on May 1st, 2025. Projects must be completed by September 18th, 2025.
The foundation is the nonprofit license holder for the Grand Falls Casino Resort near Larchwood, and a percentage of the facility’s gambling take is given back to the community through the foundation. The foundation distributes about two million dollars annually through three different grant programs — a competitive grant award program, the annual “mini-grant” program, and a non-competitive program that gives money to government subdivisions.
The agreement between the casino and the nonprofit stipulates that for the first $20 million the casino collects in gambling winnings in a year, they will give the foundation 4.5 percent. When they get up to $20 million, the percentage goes up to 4.75 percent; and when they get up to $30 million, it goes to 5 percent. Half of the money that the foundation receives from the casino goes into the competitive grant process, and the other half is distributed to Lyon County towns, cities, public schools, and the County of Lyon.
