The City of Athens is currently accepting applications for the 2025 Tourism Development Grant to promote tourism and attract overnight visitors to Athens.
Donor Name: The City of Athens
State: Texas
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant | Reimbursement
Deadline: 07/22/2024
Size of the Grant: Not Available
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
Projects must be specifically designed to attract overnight visitors to Athens. The Tourism Development Grant is open to eligible organizations or events located within the Athens city limits.
The primary use of these funds is intended to promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry in Athens. The City of Athens is under no obligation to allocate any portion of collected HOT revenues unless the City enters into a funding contract. Award of funds does not guarantee future funding. The City Council shall have the final decision regarding the allocation of funds.
Types of Grants
There is a two-part test that expenditures of local HOT funds must meet in order to be valid:
- Part One: Expenditures must DIRECTLY enhance and promote tourism and the convention and hotel industry.
- Part Two: Expenditures of HOT funds must clearly fit into one of the following categories for expenditure of HOT revenues, which are defined below:
- Advertising: Paying for advertising, solicitations, and promotions that attract tourists and convention delegates to the City or its vicinity.
- Promotion of the Arts: Expenditures that promote the arts. The encouragement, promotion, improvement, and application of the arts, including instrumental and vocal music, dance, drama, folk art, creative writing, architecture, design and allied fields of painting, sculpture, photography, graphic and craft arts, motion pictures, radio, television, tape and sound recording, and other arts related to the presentation, performance, execution, and exhibition of these major art forms. (No more than 15% of annual Hotel/Motel Occupancy Tax revenues can be spent on the arts.)
- Sporting Event Promotion: Funding certain expenses, including promotional expenses directly related to a sporting event within counties with a population of fewer than one million. (To qualify, the sporting event must be one that would “substantially increase economic activity at hotels and motels within the city or its vicinity.”)
- Tourist Transportation System: Funding transportation systems for tourists.
- Signage: Signage directing tourists to sights and attractions that are visited frequently by hotel guests in and around the City
Eligibility Requirements
- Tourism Promotion: As required by state law, all projects must encourage and promote the use of hotels and motels within Athens by enhancing and promoting tourism, conventions, and the hotel industry.
- Governance: The applicant must be an organization or corporation governed by a board of directors or similar governance structure.
- Location: The event must be located within the Athens city limits.
- Direct Benefit: The applicant must demonstrate that the funds will directly enhance and promote tourism, conventions, and the hotel industry by attracting visitors from outside of Athens.
- Legal Entity: The applicant must be a legal entity with the capacity to enter into contracts.
- Public Accessibility: The applicant must demonstrate that the programs or events are open and appropriate for the general public.
- Financial Standing: The applicant must demonstrate good financial standing and have financial safeguards in place to protect public funds. See the Financial Information section for more details.
For more information, visit City of Athens.
