Lyon County Riverboat Foundation Competitive Grant

The Lyon County Riverboat Foundation seeks to serve as a catalyst helping qualified organizations meet needs within Lyon County and beyond. Its stated areas of emphasis are Community Development and Beautification, Education and Arts, Economic Development, and Human and Social Needs. For the Competitive Grant program, the 2026 cycle introduces a specific geographic eligibility restriction. Only entities located in Lyon County, Iowa, or counties neighboring Lyon County are eligible to apply for and receive a competitive grant. The eligible counties are Lyon, Sioux, Osceola, and O'Brien counties in Iowa; Minnehaha and Lincoln counties in South Dakota; and Rock and Nobles counties in Minnesota. The Competitive Grant provides funding for eligible organizations pursuing projects aligned with the Foundation's stated areas of emphasis. The maximum amount that may be granted to a single organization in the 2026 cycle is $350,000. The source does not state a minimum award, total amount available across the program, expected number of awards, or a required matching or cost-sharing contribution. Only one application will be accepted from an organization. Approved projects may begin no earlier than October 23, 2026, and must end no later than October 8, 2027. Applications are submitted through the Lyon County Riverboat Foundation Grant Management System. Applicants may first access the application on August 3, 2026, and applications must be submitted through the system by September 18, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. The source does not identify a separate letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, notice of intent, or other pre-application gating requirement. The supplied information also does not state that the Competitive Grant is rolling or that the program automatically recurs on an annual or other regular schedule. Organizations requesting $100,000 or more have an additional application requirement. These applicants must create and submit a video through the Grant Management System explaining the request and the impact it will have on the community. The video may be no more than five minutes long. The Foundation specifically states that a project will be disqualified if the video exceeds five minutes. The video provides the organization with an additional opportunity to promote its project to the Lyon County Riverboat Foundation board. No additional application questions, required financial documents, scoring criteria, or formal evaluation criteria are identified in the supplied source. Applicants are expected to be notified whether their applications are approved between October 19 and October 23, 2026. Organizations receiving an approved grant must have at least one representative attend the award ceremony on November 5, 2026, in order to receive the grant. The event will take place at the Grand Falls Casino and Golf Resort Event Center near Larchwood, Iowa. Appetizers will be served at 6:00 p.m., and the award ceremony will begin at 7:00 p.m. Grant recipients must complete their funded projects by October 8, 2027. They must also return copies of invoices, receipts, checks, and other applicable documentation and complete and return the payout submission form through the Grant Management System no later than October 8, 2027. The Foundation lists a telephone number of 712-472-0111 and the email address Executive@LyonCountyRiverboatFoundation.org. Its mailing address is 301 First Avenue, Suite 222, PO Box 222, Rock Rapids, Iowa 51246. The supplied information does not identify an individual grant contact by name and does not provide an explicit downloadable PDF URL for the Competitive Grant.

For requests of $100,000 or more, use the required video to clearly explain the request and its impact on the community, and keep the video at or under five minutes because exceeding the limit will disqualify the project.