Park & Trail Partnership Grants: Stewardship and Public Access Grants

The Park & Trail Partnership Grants provide up to $150,000 in matching funds to enhance the stewardship and public access of New York's parks and historic sites. Funded by the NYS Environmental Protection Fund, these grants support projects that improve public engagement, sustainability, and visibility for nonprofit organizations. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) organizations focused on preservation and education. Projects must promote community involvement and can include interpretive signage, marketing plans, and shared consultant services.

The Park and Trail Partnership Grants is a $2 million capacity-building matching grants program funded through the NYS Environmental Protection Fund. The program is designed to:

• Enhance the preservation, stewardship, interpretation, maintenance and promotion of New York State parks, trails, state historic sites and public lands.

Increase the sustainability, effectiveness, productivity, and volunteer and fundraising capabilities of not-for-profit organizations that promote, maintain, and support New York State parks, trails, state historic sites and public lands.
Promote the tourism and economic development benefits of outdoor recreation through the growth and expansion of a connected statewide network of parks, trails, greenways and public lands.
Stewardship and Public Access Grants may be used to assist organizations with the stewardship, interpretation, promotion, education, and public access of a New York State Park, trail, historic site or DEC public land, or a partnership involving more than one such organization, which significantly enhances the organization’s visibility and capacity.
Examples of projects include, but are not limited to:
Public access or engagement improvements, such as interpretive kiosks, exhibits, signage, new trails with signage, and other activities that enhance public enjoyment and access to the public resource.
Community and constituency-building initiatives and programs that promote outreach and public education and recreation resulting in greater public support and broader public involvement, especially from new and presently underserved audiences, and those which enhance age-friendly recreational opportunities.
Shared consultant services between more than one eligible organization.
Development and implementation of a community outreach plan to enhance community access to and enjoyment of the public resource and awareness of the organization’s role in its preservation, stewardship, interpretation, maintenance and/or promotion.
Development and implementation of public resource marketing plans, especially if undertaken in partnership with local tourism promotion efforts.
Examples of projects that are considered construction or rehabilitation are:

• Building rehabilitation.
• Any change to historic structure: adding or removing anything, painting, remodeling or reconstructing.

Improvements, such as interpretive kiosks, exhibits, signage, new trails with signage, trailwork and other activities that enhance public enjoyment and access to the park, trail, site, or public land.
Activities whose costs are part of a larger construction project.
Activities that involve any ground disturbance or shovel in the ground.
Activities that require engineering plans and specifications.
Activities that require State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) review.
Grants up to $150,000.
A 10 percent match of the total project budget is required, up to 50 percent of which may be in-kind. Fifty percent of award is disbursed at contract signing; remainder disbursed after submission of satisfactory six-month progress report.

Eligibility

The NYS Park and Trail Partnership Grant Program is open to organizations whose mission includes the preservation, stewardship, interpretation, environmental education, maintenance, and/or promotion of a New York State park, trail, historic site or public land under the jurisdiction of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP), or Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). In addition:An applicant must be registered as a non-profit corporation with the New York State Attorney General’s office and submit their CHAR500/410 Annual Financial Report.
An applicant must be classified by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization or have a Memorandum of Understanding with a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt fiscal agent.
An applicant must have, and be in good standing under, a current agreement applicable to the grant request with OPRHP or DEC or have received a letter of intent to enter into such agreement.An applicant must have as part of its mission and activities the support of an OPRHP or DEC facility.Matching fundsApplicant organizations must match the grant with non-state funds.Matching funds must be verifiable at the time of application.In-kind match contributions must be quantifiable and documented and may include:donation of professional and construction services (legal, facilitation, consultation, etc. as well as the donation of travel costs from that individual);donation of goods (meeting rooms, equipment, printing costs, food or refreshments, construction materials); anddonation of unskilled/general labor from volunteers (trail work, administrative work, construction work).Organizations may submit more than one application, either within the same grant category or in more than one category.

Ineligibility

NYS Park and Trail Partnership Program grant funds may not be used to cover:

• Project costs incurred before date of signed grant contract
• General operating support
• Purchasing interest in lands or buildings
• Endowment funds
• Travel or lodging
• Lobbying or political activities