The Baltimore National Heritage Area and Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, along with civic, business, and cultural leaders, recognized and celebrated the eight recipient organizations of the FY2016 Small Capital Grants program.

The small capital grants provide relatively small investments to improve heritage tourism resources within the boundaries of the heritage area. The funding can be used for acquisition of property, new construction, preservation, and restoration. Projects funded range from structural repairs to the Mother Seton House on North Paca Street to the restoration of the Baltimore Museum of Industry’s historic shipyard crane.

“The types of projects supported are as diverse as the city itself,” said Jeffrey Buchheit, executive director of the Baltimore National Heritage Area. “Improving our heritage resources leads to real and positive changes in the city: spurring investment, creating jobs, and helping communities.”

The eight grant recipients are:

• Carroll Mansion (Repairs and Restoration for All-American House 2016) — $15,000
• Saint Mary's Spiritual Center (Mother Seton House Water Abatement and Repairs) — $12,500
• Saint Vincent de Paul (Front Façade Restoration) — $14,000
• Baltimore Museum of Industry (Shipyard Crane Restoration) — $15,000
• McKim Community Association (Masonry Repairs to the McKim Building) — $15,000
• Friends of Patterson Park (Park Marble Fountain Repair) — $6,000
• Maryland Military History Museum (World War One Exhibit) —  $15,000
• Orchard Street Church (Church Roof and Gutter Repair) — $7,500

The grants, awarded annually since 2004, were initially funded through Baltimore City Capital Improvement Program funds. Today voter-approved government obligation bonds support the program.

Since 2004, more than $1.4 million in funds have been awarded to improve Baltimore’s museums, cultural attractions, nature trails, and historic buildings. Each grant must be matched in cash to an amount at least equal to the grant. This requirement increases the program’s leverage; for every $1 invested, an additional $12 to $13 is spent in project activity.

The heritage area also manages a heritage investment grant program for non-capital projects and facilitates local application to the State’s Maryland Heritage Areas Authority’s project grants. Visit www.explorebaltimore.org/grants rants for a list of grant recipients and more information about the heritage area’s grant programs.