REGIONAL CULTIVATION FUND Planning and Impact Grants For Vitality, Education & Connectivity Initiatives WHIN The Wabash Heartland Innovation Network (WHIN) is a consortium of 10 counties in north-central Indiana devoted to working together to fuel prosperity by harnessing the power of Internet-enabled sensors to develop our region into a global epicenter of digital agricultural and next-generation manufacturing. The Wabash Heartland Region is comprised of: Benton, Cass, Carroll, Clinton, Fountain, Montgomery, Pulaski, Tippecanoe, Warren, and White counties. REGIONAL CULTIVATION FUND The goal of the Regional Cultivation Fund (RCF) is to spur innovative and visionary quality-of-place projects. Each applicant (for impact grants only) will be required to provide a match of at least 30% of WHIN award amount (20% may be in-kind and 10% must be in cash). These grants are dedicated to advancing the region s quality of place and must focus on at least one of the following areas: vitality, education, connectivity. Education: Increase job readiness, training, and educational alignment that prepare students, as well as adults, for the workforce of tomorrow Vitality: Increase the attractiveness of physical spaces for community benefit and implement measures to improve economic sustainability Connectivity: Enhance the engagement and connection of residents in the Wabash Heartland via waterways, broadband, and/or transportation Consistent with WHIN s mission, preference will be given to projects that: Are multi-entity, multi-county initiatives; Incorporate Internet of Things (IoT) technology / education; Respond to the needs highlighted in the WHIN Regional Place-Making Survey; and Promote long-term, sustainable efforts that strengthen the whole region. Beginning in January 2019, WHIN is presenting the first of five funding opportunities in the form of planning and impact grants. By meeting regional stakeholders at the point of their need, WHIN hopes to empower local communities to both design and implement projects in the areas of vitality, education, and connectivity. By allowing stakeholders to choose their own projects and partners, WHIN will discover the priorities of the region and help residents navigate a more sustainable future. WHIN will allow regional stakeholders from local communities to determine, based on where they re at within a project s timeline, whether they wish to pursue a planning grant or an impact grant. Obtaining a planning grant is no guarantee of funding for a future impact grant. Conversely, a planning grant is not required for the submission of an impact grant. 1
Planning Grants Timeline: Grants of up to $100,000 per award (in Round 1) Jan. 15, 2019: Announce Availability of Planning Grants Jan. 28-31, 2019: Mini Ecosystem Idea Forum for Letters of Intent (LOI) Feb. 18, 2019: Feb. 25, 2019: March 4-5, 2019: March 15, 2019: March 25, 2019: Proposers Day Deadline for Planning Grant Letters of Intent (LOI) Planning Grant Candidate Technical Assistance Workshops Deadline for Planning Grant Applications Planning Grants Awarded & Announced Deliverables Timeline (Up to One Year for Plan Development): April 2019 July 2019 January 2020 April 2020 Planning Grant Activities Begin First Opportunity to Apply for an Impact Grant Second Opportunity to Apply for an Impact Grant All Planning Activities Must be Complete/Report Due Impact Grants - Timeline: Grants from $50,000 up to $1,000,000 per award (Round 1) Jan. 15, 2019: Announce Availability of Impact Grants Jan. 28-31, 2019: Mini Ecosystem Idea Forum for Letters of Intent (LOI) Feb. 18, 2019: Feb. 25, 2019: March 4-5, 2019: March 15, 2019: Proposer s Day Deadline for Impact Grant Letters of Intent (LOI) Impact Grant Candidate Technical Assistance Workshops Deadline for Impact Grant Applications 2
March 25, 2019: April 1, 2019: May 1, 2019: June 3, 2019: June 2021: Finalists for Impact Grants Announced Impact Grant Proposal Deadline Impact Grant Presentations Round 1 Impact Grants Awarded Round 1 Impact Grant Activity Completed Round 2 Proposed Dates July 2019: Round 2 Planning & Impact Grant LOIs Due (if applicable, planning grant activities must be completed before applying for an impact grant; technical assistance workshops will be offered prior to the deadline in all funding rounds) September 2019: Round 2 Planning Grants Awarded December 2019: December 2021: Round 2 Impact Grants Awarded Round 2 Impact Grant Activity Completed/Report Due Round 3 Proposed Dates January 2020: March 2020: June 2020: June 2022: Round 3 Planning & Impact Grant LOIs Due Round 3 Planning Grants Awarded Round 3 Impact Grants Awarded Round 3 Impact Grant Activity Completed/Report Due Round 4 Proposed Dates July 2020: Round 4 Impact Grant LOIs Due September 2020: Round 4 Planning Grants Awarded December 2020: December 2022: Round 4 Impact Grants Awarded Round 4 Impact Grant Activity Completed/Report Due 3
Round 5 Proposed Dates January 2021: June 2021: June 2023: Round 5 Impact Grant LOIs Due Round 5 Impact Grants Awarded Round 5 Impact Grant Activity Completed/Report Due Program Guidelines:. Planning Grants: Objective: Assist communities in coming together to identify opportunities for advancing regional prosperity in the areas of vitality, education, and connectivity. Planning grants may be awarded in a variety of forms, such as (but not limited to): multi-county strategic plans, feasibility studies (examples include: broadband infrastructure, transportation logistics, willingness-to-pay surveys), engineering schematics, build-out cost estimates, focus groups/qualitative inquiry, etc. It is intended that this planning grant process will prepare counties to apply for Regional Cultivation Fund Impact grants and/or other external funding opportunities. Scope: Multi-entity, multi-county planning with broad stakeholder convening and organization participation is expected and encouraged. WHIN understands IoT is a new concept and encourages residents to review the resources tab of WHIN.org to explore data and gain ideas for potential project ideas (such as the data dashboard, WHIN asset map, and place-making survey results). WHIN will also host several technical assistance workshops to help communities with the development of projects. Funding Available (Four Rounds): Up to $100,000 per award for Planning Grants are available until the $500,000 allotment is exhausted. Deliverables: WHIN will allow up to one year after the planning grant award is made to conduct and conclude the planning in whatever form that takes (study, survey, drawings, estimates, etc.) and report findings based on those efforts. Eligible Applicants: Examples of eligible applicants include nonprofits, county elected bodies, and local economic development organizations. Eligible applicants include organizations that meet the definition of exempt entities as defined by Internal Revenue Code ( Code ) section 501(c)(3), and are treated as a public charity described in Code section 170(b)(1)(A). Other exempt organizations that do not possess 501(c)(3) status (such as organizations described in Code sections 501(c)(4) or 501(c)(6)), may be eligible for funding 4
but will be subject to an enhanced level of due diligence and expenditure responsibility to ensure such grants are used exclusively for charitable purposes. Eligible Expenses: County-level entities that receive planning grants will use funds to execute the study, survey, drawings, estimates, etc., for which the grant was awarded. Expenditures are eligible if the expense directly contributes towards the planning process. Project funding may be used for costs associated with work completed by consultants or subject matter experts. Technical assistance, environmental studies, engineering design, stakeholder engagement activities or similar types of planning may also qualify as eligible expenditures. Planning grant funds cannot be used for project implementation. Impact Grants: Objective: Quality of place funding for implementation of projects or programs strategically designed to positively impact the Wabash Heartland region. These projects, informed by the results of the WHIN Regional Place-Making Survey conducted from June through September 2018, should focus on at least one of the following areas: vitality, education, and/or connectivity. Scope: Multi-county planning with broad stakeholder convening and organization participation is expected and encouraged. WHIN understands IoT is a new concept and encourages residents to review the resources tab of WHIN.org to explore data and gain ideas for potential project ideas. WHIN will also host several idea forums, Proposer s Day, and technical assistance workshops to help counties and communities with the development of projects. Funding Available (Five Rounds): Up to $1 million per award for Impact Grants are available until the $9.5 million allotment is exhausted. Applicants denied funding in previous rounds may still apply for future rounds. Grant applications for each impact grant funding round will be received until the application deadline for that round. The applications will then be reviewed, evaluated and funded on the dates specified for that round. All grant funds must be expended and grantfunded work completed within 24 months after the agreement is signed. Match: Each applicant will be required to provide a match of at least 30% of WHIN award amount (20% may be in-kind and 10% must be in cash). Among the project/program partners, a lead applicant (or fiscal agent) who possesses the 501c3 status must be identified, but the match may be provided by any of the grant partners specified in the Letter of Intent (LOI). Eligible Applicants: Generally speaking, the following organizations will be considered eligible to applyo Incorporated cities and towns 5
o County Commissions and Councils o Nonprofits including foundations, agencies, and hospitals o Public Educational Institutions including pre-k, K-12, and post-secondary o Main Street organizations o Chambers of Commerce/Economic Development Orgs with 501(c)(3) Eligible applicants include organizations that meet the definition of exempt entities as defined by Internal Revenue Code ( Code ) section 501(c)(3) and are treated as a public charity described in Code section 170(b)(1)(A). Other exempt organizations that do not possess 501(c)(3) status (such as organizations described in Code sections 501(c)(4) or 501(c)(6)), may be eligible for funding but will be subject to an enhanced level of due diligence and expenditure responsibility to ensure such grants are used exclusively for charitable purposes. Eligible Projects: Innovative or transformative projects or programs that improve regional quality of place while adhering to funding limitations. Personnel, supplies, travel, training, and capital expenses are all eligible. Examples of IOT-embedded projects: Embedding the Internet of Things (IoT) into your project does not have to be an intimidating task. First, consider how your project could benefit from the 3Ds: Devices delivering Data to help make Decisions. Take for instance, the Wabash River, which is in the watershed of all 10 counties and actually touches five of them (Carroll, Cass, Fountain, Tippecanoe & Warren). To enhance quality of place in these five counties, one idea would be to place sensors on a fleet of canoes (the device ) that deliver information about water level, water quality, and safety (the data ) to residents of the Wabash Heartland to make it easier for them to access and navigate the waterway (the decisions ), heightening their enjoyment of the outdoors and increasing their amount of physical activity. To add the educational dimension, canoers could download a GPS-enabled app for their phone that provides personalized audio-visual information based on location, so the visitor could hear about the history of Indiana along the Wabash or listen to Indiana-inspired cruising music. While this example combines vitality, education, and connectivity components into one project, it is not a requirement to do so. Evaluation Criteria: Applicants should identify how project impact will be measured, what indicators will be utilized to determine project success, and how the project outcomes will benefit the community/the Wabash Heartland region. WHIN will provide technical assistance to help applicants develop their protocol. 6