For much of the town’s history after incorporating in 1907, the Town of Lowrys did not have a town hall. Its council met in several locations over the years, but they felt that the town needed a space to conduct business free of any outside scheduling conflicts.
In 2018, the town sought and received a Hometown Economic Development Grant from the Municipal Association of SC for the town hall.
Lowrys was able to leverage its grant from the program with other funding to make the vision a reality. The effort rebuilt a vacant house, previously a doctor’s office, into a space that not only served the town’s needs for office and meeting space, but which also offers display space for artifacts from Lowrys’ history.
The project was one of many to receive funding assistance from the Municipal Association’s HEDG program, and applications for the 2022 grant cycle will open after the Association’s Annual Meeting.
Applying for a Hometown Economic Development Grant
The 2022 HEDG cycle will award as many as 12 grants of up to $25,000 each.
HEDG project proposals must make a positive, measurable and sustainable economic impact on a community. Some project types are excluded, as explained in the full eligibility rules on the application.
Those interested should apply online by Friday, September 30 at 5 p.m. The application and grant awards have several key requirements:
- The council pass a resolution in support of the grant application.
- Cities and towns that receive a grant must provide matching funds.
- Grant recipients must also submit progress reports and provide financial details about how they spent grant funds.
To keep HEDG equitable and effective, the program awards grants among several population categories, with most awards going to cities and towns with populations below 5,000 according to the 2020 census. The population size determines the amount of funding available for recipients.
Beginning in late July, find the HEDG application and sample resolution online. For questions, contact Scott Slatton at sslatton@masc.sc.