The Downtown Development Board’s (“DDB”) Special Event Grant Program supports non-profit organizations holding special events within the Orlando Central City Neighborhood Development Area.
Donor Name: Downtown Development Board
State: Florida
City: Orlando
Type of Grant: Grant | Reimbursement
Deadline: 08/01/2025
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The program provides limited reimbursable grants to those events that will positively impact the DDB and help further the DDB’s mission by bringing people to the DDB Area and encouraging them to frequent both the businesses and hotels within the DDB Area.
Program Goals
- Support Downtown Economic Vitality
- Encourage increased activity in the downtown area by attracting attendees who will frequent local businesses, restaurants, retailers, and hoteliers.
- Elevate Cultural and Community Engagement
- Support events that celebrate local arts and culture and create shared experiences that strengthen the community.
- Enhance the Identity and Appeal of Downtown Orlando for All
- Fund programming that reinforces downtown Orlando as a dynamic, attractive destination for residents and visitors of all backgrounds and economic means.
- Encourage Collaboration and Innovation
- Promote creative partnerships between organizations (e.g. local businesses, artists, cultural organizations) and encourage unique, high quality programming that enhances the overall event landscape in downtown Orlando.
- Contribute to an Activated Public Realm
- Encourage events that visibly create vibrancy within downtown Orlando, especially events that occur in outdoor public spaces.
Funding Information
- Eligible funding amounts for events (non-run/walk)
- 1,000 – 5,000 attendees – up to $5,000 maximum
- 5,001 – 10,000 attendees – up to $10,000 maximum
- Over 10,000 attendees – up to $20,000 maximum
- Eligible funding amounts for run/walk events
- Over 5,000 attendees – up to $5,000 maximum
- Eligible funding amounts for parades
- Over 5,000 attendees – up to $5,000 maximum.
Uses of Fund
Grants may only be used solely towards the reimbursement of the following event expenses:
- event related marketing and promotion
- rentals for the event such as equipment, tents, chairs, tables, facilities, and port-o-lets
- City fees related to the event.
Eligibility Criteria
- For an event to be eligible it must:
- Occur entirely within the DDB Area (If an event has multiple locations, the DDB will only consider funding the event portion occurring within the DDB Area).
- Be open to the public.
- Free entry to all attendees.
- Have an attendance of more than 1,000 people for general events, and more than 5,000 for walks/runs/parades.
- Occur after approval of any funding and execution of the grant agreement under this Program.
- For an organization to be eligible it must:
- Be a non- profit entity registered with the Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations, which has also received a tax exempt determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c).
- Not have any outstanding fees with the City of Orlando at the time of application.
For more information, visit DDB.
