COLD LAKE —From local athletes and arts programs to community events and major facility improvements, Cold Lake organizations are continuing to make strong use of the City’s community grant programs.

Cold Lake Community Grant Advisory Committee Chair Lacey Chyz updated council on the program during its Aug. 25 meeting, outlining the number of applications coming through the committee, the money being distributed, and the impact those dollars are having across the community.

The committee reviewed 58 applications in 2025 and had already considered another 31 applications in 2026 by the time of the presentation.

Chyz said the program is attracting a mix of familiar organizations and first-time applicants.

“We’re really happy to see both repeat applicants come back year after year, as well as seeing new organizations or new student athletes and folks come forward looking for development grants and leadership grants and travel grants,” Chyz told council.

The committee reviews applications before making recommendations to council, with funding available through several different categories depending on the project or applicant.

Those requests can look very different from one another.

At the committee’s June 18 meeting, for example, members considered applications involving the Cold Lake Library Board, Flowing Hearts Indigenous Art Collective, local musician Reegan Dehid and the Clayton Bellamy Foundation for the Arts.

Capital grants filling a funding gap

One area Chyz particularly wants to see continue is the City’s Community Capital Project Grant program.

More than $56,000 was distributed for capital grants in 2025, while more than $75,000 had already been distributed for capital projects in 2026 by late August.

With council heading toward its 2027 budget deliberations, Chyz encouraged members to keep that funding stream in place.

“I would hope that you would consider continuing to fund that capital grant stream,” Chyz said. “There’s not a lot of options out there for capital funding for not-for-profits.”

She said Cold Lake’s program provides an opportunity that isn’t always available elsewhere.

“Our city is unique in that regard, and it’s been valuable in providing upgrades to buildings and services that otherwise might not be able to move forward.”

The funding doesn’t simply disappear once council approves a cheque.

Grant recipients report back on how funding was used, giving the committee a chance to see the results of the projects it has supported.

“We’re starting to now see reports come back on how that funding has been put to use and the impact that it’s having in our community,” Chyz said.

The June committee minutes show that process in action, with members accepting final funding reports from three previously supported projects before forwarding them to council for information.

Still room for more applications

Despite the number of applications already considered in 2026, Chyz had a simple message for organizations that hadn’t applied yet: there was still funding available.

At the Aug. 25 meeting, she said another four opportunities remained to apply for CRACH grants in 2026.

“We still have money in the budget,” Chyz told council.

The workload behind those grants is substantial.

Chyz singled out City staff member Tara Dimion for her work handling the intake process, assisting applicants and preparing committee meeting packages that can run into hundreds of pages.

“This program could not run the way that it does without the work that Tara does,” Chyz said.

Coun. Chris Vining, who sits on the committee, returned some of that praise to Chyz. He noted the committee can include a large group with diverse opinions — joking that it can occasionally involve a little “herding of the cats” — and thanked Chyz for the time and effort she contributes as a volunteer.

With dozens of applications crossing the committee table each year, Cold Lake’s community grant programs continue to support everything from individual development opportunities to larger projects and improvements.

As the committee heads into another City budget, Chyz made the case that demand for that support remains strong.