MAPLETON – Council here approved a new community grants policy on Sept. 23.
The policy consolidates and replaces three former policies on municipal grants, athletic and cultural bursaries, and 50/50 funding for parks and recreation projects. According to township staff, the consolidation “promotes efficiency and consistency while still maintaining the merits of the original grant funding programs.”
The policy includes five funding streams:
– municipal grants for third-party programs and initiatives;
– operating grants for not-for-profits for projects, programs or events;
– in-kind grants for labour, equipment and services
– capital grants (formerly 50/50 grants) for service clubs and community groups for physical assets; and
– athletic and cultural grants to offset costs of participating at the provincial/national/international levels.
Township treasurer Patrick Kelly proposed a draft of the policy during a council meeting on Sept. 9. At that time council deferred approval, asking staff to make some changes to the draft and come back with more information.
This included a review of athletic and cultural bursaries provided between 2022 and 2024. A total of $1,000 was given out in 2022, $5,000 in 2023 and about $1,300 in 2024.
Staff asked for the numbers to inform a decision about an overall cap on the bursary program. Based on historical utilization, staff recommended a funding cap of $2,000 per year, which could be monitored and adjusted if necessary.
In addition to $2,000 allocated for bursaries, the township is budgeting for $53,000 in municipal grants and $20,000 in operating/capital grants. In 2025, the township provided $74,900 in capital grants under the above streams.
The breakdown of the municipal grants, which are expected to continue, were $32,000 to The Grove, $10,000 to the Minto-Mapleton Family Health Team and $10,000 to the Seniors Centre for Excellence.
The earlier draft did not include direction for the township’s parks and recreation committee to participate in reviews and recommendations for capital grants, something councillor Michael Martin expressed concern about during the Sept. 9 meeting. After that meeting a staff review found the capital grant program “was strategically established to support park and recreation enhancements throughout Mapleton,” according to a report.
Staff revised the draft policy to “provide clarity around the types of initiatives that may be supported and provide the opportunity for the parks and recreation committee to review applications before recommending priority projects to council.”
Council voted unanimously to approve the policy.
