City awards grants to nonprofits

The Laguna Beach City Council awarded more than $240,000 on Tuesday to 30 nonprofit organizations.

A subcommittee of the council reviews applications for Community Assistance Funds and makes recommendations. The funds are given annually when the fiscal budget is approved. Grants ranged from $500 to $20,000, with more than $3,000 left in reserve.

“Only two organizations got as much as they asked for,” said Mayor Pro Tem Elizabeth Pearson, who served on the 2013 subcommittee with Mayor Kelly Boyd.

The subcommittee recommended that the Cross Cultural Council be awarded the $20,000 it requested, due to its service to the city at the Day Labor Hiring Center. The Laguna Beach Friends of the Library asked for and received $15,000 to help make up for cuts by the county.

Laguna Beach Seniors Inc., the Laguna Beach Clinic and the Chamber of Commerce were awarded $20,000 each. The Boys and Girls Club received $15,000 and its branch, TLC, was awarded $7,000 for a total of $22,000.

The council approved all of the recommendations, after Councilman Steve Dicterow was updated on Glenwood House of Laguna Beach, which was new to him since he last served on the council.

Glenwood, which will provide housing for developmentally challenged young adults, was awarded $5,000.

The Laguna Beach HIV Advisory Committee was bumped up from the original $13,000 to $13,500, with the added $500 coming from the reserve fund.

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$10,000 Awards

Laguna Beach Live, No Square Theatre and Sally’s Fund

$8,000

Age Well Senior Services, Laguna Beach Plein Air Painter Assn. and Protecting Unwanted Pets

$7,000

Laguna Resource and Relief Center and Laguna Dance Festival, with the Laguna Community Concert Band just behind at $6,000

$5,000

Laguna Canyon Foundation and Laguna Ocean Foundation

$4,000

Friends of the Hortense Miller Gardens, Friendship Shelter and Laguna Outreach Community Arts

$2,000

Helping Hand World Wide and Coastal Family Therapy

$1,500

Laguna Beach Historical Society and Laura’s House

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The Laguna Beach Woman’s Club was awarded $1,000. The Sawdust Festival and Soroptimist International each received $500.

Rotary did not get the $2,000 requested but will be allowed to use the Forest /Laguna Canyon parking lot and to bag the meters on Laguna Canyon Road for its annual Classic Car Show, valued at $1,500.

The grants are funded by the Festival of Arts lease payment to the city. The amount may vary slightly from year to year. This year, the total was $243,839.