Applications are CURRENTLY CLOSED for this grant. For assistance on your current application, please email grants@lakestreetcouncil.org or call 612-822-0232.

Nonprofit COVID Relief Grant Application

This grant is focused on supporting Lake Street’s nonprofit organizations whose programs or services have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Lake Street is home to many nonprofit organizations that provide critical services, cultural amenities, and economic activity for the corridor’s businesses and residents. Lake Street Council seeks to support the vital efforts of Lake Street’s nonprofit community and ensure that organizations who serve our community will be able to withstand the challenges that the pandemic has presented.

These grants are made possible through a contribution of $150,000 from the Minnesota Disaster Recovery Fund (MDRF) for Coronavirus

Nonprofit organizations in the Lake Street corridor that have been prohibited from engaging in their primary revenue-generating programs and events due to the State of Minnesota Executive Order 20-99 (which required a temporary ban on most events beginning November 20, 2020) are eligible to apply for funding. Priority will be given to small and mid-sized nonprofit organizations who contribute to Lake Street’s status as a cultural corridor or who provided needed services.

Applications are due by midnight on January 11, 2021. Applicants will be eligible for grants of up to $10,000.

For assistance on the application, email grants@lakestreetcouncil.org or call 612-822-0232.

Description & Eligibility

Total Available Funds: $150,000
Application Cycle Opens: December 22, 2020
Application Cycle Closes: January 11, 2021
Grant Size: up to $10,000

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants must meet the following criteria to be eligible for a grant:

  • Be a 501c3, 501c4, or 501c6 nonprofit organization or have fiscal sponsorship from a 501c3, 501c4, or 501c6 nonprofit organization.

  • Provide a complete application including necessary supporting documentation.

  • Be located within the Lake Street geographic area, which is defined as the area bounded by West River Parkway on the east, 26th Street on the north, the border of Minneapolis and St. Louis Park on the west, and 34th Street on the south.

  • At least 1 year of operations at current location within the Lake Street corridor.

  • Normally employ at least 1 FTE (full-time equivalent) employee or hire at least 2 contractors or PT employees for significant work on an annual basis.

  • Nonprofits that were required to close or significantly scale back operations and programming due to the recent executive order, which primarily includes:

    • Gyms and studios for martial arts, personal fitness or yoga 

    • Theaters and arts organizations

    • Events and reception spaces

    • Nonprofit-owned restaurants, bars, and food service providers

Applicants do not need to be members of Lake Street Council or any other organization to qualify for funding or to receive assistance. Unlike other grants recently available from Lake Street Council, applicants are not required to be located within a building that was damaged during the civil uprising this summer.

Usage of Funding

Grants are intended to support the continued operations of award recipients. Funding will be provided in the form of a general operating grant. 

Applicants will be required to submit information describing how the pandemic, and the resulting executive orders and mandated closures, impacted the financial health of their organizations. They will also be asked to submit a description of how funding will be used to sustain their operations.

Examples of possible uses for funds could include:

  • A gym that has been closed and lost revenue due to member cancellations can pay rent, mortgage, or utility bills

  • A theater that was forced to cancel a planned performance could pay the artists instead of cancelling their contracts 

  • An organization that earns revenue from pay-what-you-can meals can pay staff 

  • An events space that has not been able to book in-person events can pay for A/V equipment to transition to a virtual event model

  • Organizations that have lost income can continue to pay rent or mortgages to prevent the loss of their space.

Application Process

To apply for a Lake Street Nonprofit Covid Relief grant, please fill out this form. 

You will be asked to submit the following documentation:

  • Federal tax-exempt letter for organization or fiscal sponsor

  • Completed W-9 Form

  • 2020 Budget-to-Actuals

  • List of Board of Directors

  • Optional additional attachments, such as photos or PDFs, that help demonstrate impacts of Covid-19 on organization

  • Fiscally-sponsored organizations that receive an award will need to provide a letter of support from an organization that serves as fiscal sponsor before disbursement of funds.

To provide universal accessibility we can accept video or voice recorded applications. You may choose to answer the narrative questions in the application by linking to a video uploaded on Youtube or Vimeo. Applications submitted by video or voice recording will be given no greater or lesser value than written applications. 

If you have any questions, please email Ruth at grants@lakestreetcouncil.org or call/text 612-295-2969. 

Application Review Process

Applications will be accepted until midnight on January 11, 2020. Applications will be reviewed beginning after the deadline has passed. We expect to be able to notify grant recipients of their grant status by February 1, 2020.

We expect to give 15 to 30 grants of $5,000 to $10,000 each. We may not be able to fund all applicants, and may in some cases choose to give partial grants. In the likely case that we have more requests than we can fully fund, we will use a scoring rubric to prioritize allocating funding to applicants who demonstrate the following attributes in their applications:

  • Significant financial losses in 2020 that can be directly attributed to impacts of local and state executive orders and that have created economic hardship for employees or contractors of the organization.

  • Programs and activities that support the vitality of Lake Street as a cultural corridor.

  • Programs that serve the needs of vulnerable populations within the corridor.

  • Operations within a physical space on Lake Street that would normally generate foot traffic from local residents or visitors to the corridor.

  • Organizations with 1-25 staff or a budget under $3,000,000.

  • Organizations for whom 50% or greater of staff and/or board members identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) 

We may request a short interview or additional documentation before making final decisions. 

Grantmaking decisions will be made by the Lake Street Nonprofit Covid Relief Grant Committee. The group is composed of Lake Street Council board members, representatives from other Lake Street businesses and organizations, and residents of the Lake Street neighborhood. All members of the Lake Street Nonprofit Covid Relief Grant Committee will recuse themselves from decision making when they have a professional or personal relationship with a potential grant recipient.

Terms and Reporting Requirements

Funds will be disbursed in a timely manner following final decisions. Grantees will be required to submit a short report by March 31st that provides a simple narrative description of how funds supported the continuation of organizational operations.

Please complete the following form as an initial step in applying for a Nonprofit Covid Grant.

If you have questions about the process, eligibility criteria, or application questions, please contact grants@lakestreetcouncil.org.