TGRC Grant Guidelines Fiscal Year July 2025 - July 2026
*Part of the Centre County Room Tax Grant process
The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau (HVAB), in Partnership with the Centre County Commissioners office, is accepting grant requests for event or projects that will have a positive impact on the tourism industry in Centre County during Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: The set-aside apportionment of the Centre County Room Tax specific to the support for not-for-profit cultural, educational, historical and recreational assets is to be used for underwriting the expense of initiatives by those assets for the purpose of enhancing the tourism experience, increasing tourism and overnight stays within Centre County. Awards are granted annually on the basis of merit as determined by the Tourism Grant Review Committee (TGRC) and administered by the Centre County Board of Commissioners and Happy Valley Adventure Bureau (HVAB) and follow Pennsylvania State Regulations (Act 18 of 2016) <--- click here to view the Act.
The TGRC grants have been established to reach the following goals:
1. Recognize and support events that have a significant economic impact on Centre County
2. Support organizations and activities that strengthen the perception of Centre County
3. Support applications that are clear, complete and well thought-out
Overall consideration may be increased when an application demonstrates the following:
∙ A strong room night impact, with demand generation at a time of need
∙ New projects OR projects that have significant changes from prior year’s project.
Applications should specifically show how the event or project brings visitors to Centre County, both for this event or project, and in the long-term as well. Grants are not intended to provide long-term or operational support but are intended to support marketing, events, and capital improvement efforts that help advance the goals above.
1.) General Information
Grants may be awarded to all qualifying cultural, educational, historical, recreational and special event entities or qualified event venue of meaningful impact on driving business to Centre County.
∙ The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Board reserves the right to establish a “maximum funding limit” in any particular grant cycle based on the total number of applications, total funds requested and total funds available.
∙ Applicants must have a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) in order to apply.
∙ Generally, no grants will be provided for political or sectarian religious purposes.
∙ Requests for tourism enhancement and certain capital infrastructure improvements that benefit tourism and enhance the visitors/attendees experience and foster increased visitation will be considered.
∙ Grants will not be awarded for operational expenses.
∙ Grant funds cannot be used to purchase membership, advertising, etc. from or with any Convention and Visitors Bureau, Chamber of Commerce or similar organization outside of Centre County.
∙ Grants shall not be used for signage that promotes a specific private entity on the site of that entity, except where the signage also carries the logo of the HVAB.
∙ Grants shall not be used by the Grantee to compete with any other private sector tourism or travel efforts in the county as determined by the HVAB.
∙ In accordance with Pennsylvania law, Act 18, all grant recipients must provide at least a 25 percent match, cash or in-kind, of the requested grant amount.
A cash match can be derived from:
- Applicant dollars
- Sponsorships
- Donated dollars
- Leveraging another grant
An In-Kind match could include:
- Donated physical items – examples: rental venue, printed collateral
- Donated professional services – classified as someone who routinely, as a career, provides that
service. Examples: accounting services, legal services, painting, IT development
- Volunteer hours will NOT be accepted as an in-kind match.
- Staff time will NOT be accepted as an in-kind match.
All In-Kind matches need to be valued and documented by the donating organization(s). The documentation must:
- Show confirmation from the donor with a signature or official invoice.
- Determine how the contribution can be traced back to source documentation.
2.) Grants for Tourism Enhancement/Capital Infrastructure Improvement - Visitor Facility Upgrades / Construction: projects that will enhance the non-resident visitor experience and increase expenditures.
Grants may be awarded to qualifying Centre County Non-Profit businesses and organizations that demonstrate the greatest need for the funds and the strongest commitment to use the funds to provide adequate resources to proposed tourism and recreation projects that will enhance the non-resident visitor experience and increase expenditures in the community.
Tourism Grant funds can be requested for actual project and activity related costs only.
Examples of ineligible project costs include but are not limited to: workshops and training; market research or feasibility studies; staff costs including wages, travel, per diem; administrative, overhead, or indirect costs; office supplies; promotional items; subscriptions or membership costs; domain registration and website hosting; routine operation and maintenance costs.
3.) Grant funds will be awarded in proportion with your project execution. A call for applications will be announced in January and must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on March 3, 2025. Award amounts must be used within one (1) year of receipt.
- Grant funds will be distributed based on the requirements of the TGRC. If the funds are not expended by within the one (1) year period, applicants may apply for a 1-year extension. If the funds are not expended by the end of the extension period, applicants will forfeit the remaining grant funds; likewise, if the funds are not expended as agreed based on the application, applicants will forfeit the remaining grant amount.
4.) Awards will be given based on demonstration of the potential for attracting tourism beyond the Centre County area. Priority will be given to those groups and/or organizations which can provide documentation of success from past initiatives in achieving the goals of this granting authority.
5.) An initial payment of the approved grant amount will be disbursed upon receipt, acceptance, and execution of the Grant Agreement by the HVAB. Grant funds are disbursed in proportion with your event/project execution. Grant Recipients must provide the HVAB with an invoice requesting the approved grant amount before funds will be released. Grant funds will be disbursed throughout the grant cycle year.
6.) Each grant recipient will follow these guidelines for tourism enhancement projects:
Invoicing from vendors is to be paid directly by Grant Recipient. Copies of invoices must be included in final report.
Tourism enhancement projects must include The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Logo.
Grant recipients shall follow the logo guidelines when designing advertising (print or digital) or communication pieces and must include The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau logo on all print and digital media as it relates to the awarded grant project.
Logo Guidelines:
LOGO USE CASES
Use cases are put in place to create consistency within the brand. These examples should
be followed in order to create recognizable, professional-looking layouts for the HVAB.
Logos available for use ----> HV logo HVAB logo HVAB logo style guide
SIZING RATIOS
Logo sizing relationships will always be measured using the letter “H” in “HAPPY” as a unit of measurement. Between the Keystone, Wordmark, and Badge, when more than one is used in the same layout, the “H” should be the same size in each. The same goes for spacing outside of the individual logo. The Wordmark and Keystone need two “H” marks minimum clearance on all sides, while the Badge needs three minimum.
WORD MARK AND KEYSTONE
The Keystone may be used with the Badge or Wordmark in a layout, but the Badge and Wordmark should never be used together. We don’t need to say the full name more than once.
Badge should never be less than two inches wide in any layout. If it must be smaller, the Wordmark should be used instead.
7.) Upon receipt of a grant award, should any changes to the intended purpose of the original application be necessary; you must receive prior approval from the TGRC. Contact the HVAB team at 814-231-1400 or email us at HVABgrantprogram@happyvally.com. Failure to comply may result in penalties up to and including the recipient remitting a full refund of their grant award.
8.) ●●A final project report is due to the HVAB 90 days after completion of project and no later than October 1, 2026, and MUST BE submitted via the online final report template. Please make sure to fill the template out completely, and then send it to HVABgrantprogram@happyvalley.com or through the postal service. Final project reports must provide a narrative that will enhance our understanding of the success of your project and include the following:
Cost Effective Budget Management
All expenditures are logical and adhere to HVAB guidelines. Copies of all receipts have been provided and correlate with the success of the project and the stimulation of the local economy. Please use this financial breakdown spreadsheet for your close-out report.
Make sure to click download file after clicking on the link above.
1. Includes evidence of additional financial sources
2. Auditable financial accounting for all expenditures from grant funds
3. Itemized list of expenses with copies of receipts
4. Narrative on the stimulation of local economy
*Applicants are encouraged to make arrangements with our marketing team to review data from our social media and website analytics. * Contact Dave Gerdes: DaveG@happyvalley.com
9.) An organization may file a grant request in any one or more of the categories referenced on the Grant Application.
10.) Nothing shall prevent the granting entity, TGRC, from withholding part or all of the total monies available for annual awards should the granting entity feel that insufficient requests have been made to justify exhaustion of those funds. Should funds be remaining at the end of any single fiscal year, those funds may be rolled forward into the following year for granting consideration.
11.) It should not be presumed that any applicant will be awarded a grant on an annual basis, nor should the availability of these grant awards be considered an annual part of any applicant’s budget.
12.) An organization must have their prior year(s) final report completed and approved before the TGRC considers a new grant application, unless given an extension.
13.) The Tourism Grant Review Committee (TGRC) shall be composed of five (5) members: Two Centre County Commissioners, President/CEO of The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, one Board appointed Centre County Hotel General Manager, and the President of the Centre County Historical Society. These community members shall ideally be citizens outside of the board of directors of any of the applicant organizations or events. Any TGRC member with a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict, may not participate in the review of, or decision on, any grant request for which such a conflict exists and are mandated to remove his or herself from the review and/or decision-making process of the grant application they are associated with. If a TGRC member must be excused, the HVAB chairperson may appoint an alternate to replace him/her. The TGRC will make the final granting decision, which must be ratified by The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Board of Directors who carry the fiduciary responsibility as mandated in Act 18 of 2016.
14.) The TGRC shall be charged with making certain each award meets and or exceeds the established criteria. The TGRC shall present each of their final recommendations for awards to the HVAB Board of Directors for ratification on an individual basis.
15.) Grant awards shall be presented jointly by the Centre County Board of Commissioners and the HVAB.
Tourism Enhancement Grant Application for July 2025 - July 2026
TGRC Grant Guidelines Fiscal Year July 2025 - July 2026
*Part of the Centre County Room Tax Grant process
The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau (HVAB), in Partnership with the Centre County Commissioners office, is accepting grant requests for event or projects that will have a positive impact on the tourism industry in Centre County during Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: The set-aside apportionment of the Centre County Room Tax specific to the support for not-for-profit cultural, educational, historical and recreational assets is to be used for underwriting the expense of initiatives by those assets for the purpose of enhancing the tourism experience, increasing tourism and overnight stays within Centre County. Awards are granted annually on the basis of merit as determined by the Tourism Grant Review Committee (TGRC) and administered by the Centre County Board of Commissioners and Happy Valley Adventure Bureau (HVAB) and follow Pennsylvania State Regulations (Act 18 of 2016) <--- click here to view the Act.
The TGRC grants have been established to reach the following goals:
1. Recognize and support events that have a significant economic impact on Centre County
2. Support organizations and activities that strengthen the perception of Centre County
3. Support applications that are clear, complete and well thought-out
Overall consideration may be increased when an application demonstrates the following:
∙ A strong room night impact, with demand generation at a time of need
∙ New projects OR projects that have significant changes from prior year’s project.
Applications should specifically show how the event or project brings visitors to Centre County, both for this event or project, and in the long-term as well. Grants are not intended to provide long-term or operational support but are intended to support marketing, events, and capital improvement efforts that help advance the goals above.
1.) General Information
Grants may be awarded to all qualifying cultural, educational, historical, recreational and special event entities or qualified event venue of meaningful impact on driving business to Centre County.
∙ The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Board reserves the right to establish a “maximum funding limit” in any particular grant cycle based on the total number of applications, total funds requested and total funds available.
∙ Applicants must have a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) in order to apply.
∙ Generally, no grants will be provided for political or sectarian religious purposes.
∙ Requests for tourism enhancement and certain capital infrastructure improvements that benefit tourism and enhance the visitors/attendees experience and foster increased visitation will be considered.
∙ Grants will not be awarded for operational expenses.
∙ Grant funds cannot be used to purchase membership, advertising, etc. from or with any Convention and Visitors Bureau, Chamber of Commerce or similar organization outside of Centre County.
∙ Grants shall not be used for signage that promotes a specific private entity on the site of that entity, except where the signage also carries the logo of the HVAB.
∙ Grants shall not be used by the Grantee to compete with any other private sector tourism or travel efforts in the county as determined by the HVAB.
∙ In accordance with Pennsylvania law, Act 18, all grant recipients must provide at least a 25 percent match, cash or in-kind, of the requested grant amount.
A cash match can be derived from:
- Applicant dollars
- Sponsorships
- Donated dollars
- Leveraging another grant
An In-Kind match could include:
- Donated physical items – examples: rental venue, printed collateral
- Donated professional services – classified as someone who routinely, as a career, provides that
service. Examples: accounting services, legal services, painting, IT development
- Volunteer hours will NOT be accepted as an in-kind match.
- Staff time will NOT be accepted as an in-kind match.
All In-Kind matches need to be valued and documented by the donating organization(s). The documentation must:
- Show confirmation from the donor with a signature or official invoice.
- Determine how the contribution can be traced back to source documentation.
2.) Grants for Tourism Enhancement/Capital Infrastructure Improvement - Visitor Facility Upgrades / Construction: projects that will enhance the non-resident visitor experience and increase expenditures.
Grants may be awarded to qualifying Centre County Non-Profit businesses and organizations that demonstrate the greatest need for the funds and the strongest commitment to use the funds to provide adequate resources to proposed tourism and recreation projects that will enhance the non-resident visitor experience and increase expenditures in the community.
Tourism Grant funds can be requested for actual project and activity related costs only.
Examples of ineligible project costs include but are not limited to: workshops and training; market research or feasibility studies; staff costs including wages, travel, per diem; administrative, overhead, or indirect costs; office supplies; promotional items; subscriptions or membership costs; domain registration and website hosting; routine operation and maintenance costs.
3.) Grant funds will be awarded in proportion with your project execution. A call for applications will be announced in January and must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on March 3, 2025. Award amounts must be used within one (1) year of receipt.
- Grant funds will be distributed based on the requirements of the TGRC. If the funds are not expended by within the one (1) year period, applicants may apply for a 1-year extension. If the funds are not expended by the end of the extension period, applicants will forfeit the remaining grant funds; likewise, if the funds are not expended as agreed based on the application, applicants will forfeit the remaining grant amount.
4.) Awards will be given based on demonstration of the potential for attracting tourism beyond the Centre County area. Priority will be given to those groups and/or organizations which can provide documentation of success from past initiatives in achieving the goals of this granting authority.
5.) An initial payment of the approved grant amount will be disbursed upon receipt, acceptance, and execution of the Grant Agreement by the HVAB. Grant funds are disbursed in proportion with your event/project execution. Grant Recipients must provide the HVAB with an invoice requesting the approved grant amount before funds will be released. Grant funds will be disbursed throughout the grant cycle year.
6.) Each grant recipient will follow these guidelines for tourism enhancement projects:
Invoicing from vendors is to be paid directly by Grant Recipient. Copies of invoices must be included in final report.
Tourism enhancement projects must include The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Logo.
Grant recipients shall follow the logo guidelines when designing advertising (print or digital) or communication pieces and must include The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau logo on all print and digital media as it relates to the awarded grant project.
Logo Guidelines:
LOGO USE CASES
Use cases are put in place to create consistency within the brand. These examples should
be followed in order to create recognizable, professional-looking layouts for the HVAB.
Logos available for use ----> HV logo HVAB logo HVAB logo style guide
SIZING RATIOS
Logo sizing relationships will always be measured using the letter “H” in “HAPPY” as a unit of measurement. Between the Keystone, Wordmark, and Badge, when more than one is used in the same layout, the “H” should be the same size in each. The same goes for spacing outside of the individual logo. The Wordmark and Keystone need two “H” marks minimum clearance on all sides, while the Badge needs three minimum.
WORD MARK AND KEYSTONE
The Keystone may be used with the Badge or Wordmark in a layout, but the Badge and Wordmark should never be used together. We don’t need to say the full name more than once.
Badge should never be less than two inches wide in any layout. If it must be smaller, the Wordmark should be used instead.
7.) Upon receipt of a grant award, should any changes to the intended purpose of the original application be necessary; you must receive prior approval from the TGRC. Contact the HVAB team at 814-231-1400 or email us at HVABgrantprogram@happyvally.com. Failure to comply may result in penalties up to and including the recipient remitting a full refund of their grant award.
8.) ●●A final project report is due to the HVAB 90 days after completion of project and no later than October 1, 2026, and MUST BE submitted via the online final report template. Please make sure to fill the template out completely, and then send it to HVABgrantprogram@happyvalley.com or through the postal service. Final project reports must provide a narrative that will enhance our understanding of the success of your project and include the following:
Cost Effective Budget Management
All expenditures are logical and adhere to HVAB guidelines. Copies of all receipts have been provided and correlate with the success of the project and the stimulation of the local economy. Please use this financial breakdown spreadsheet for your close-out report.
Make sure to click download file after clicking on the link above.
1. Includes evidence of additional financial sources
2. Auditable financial accounting for all expenditures from grant funds
3. Itemized list of expenses with copies of receipts
4. Narrative on the stimulation of local economy
*Applicants are encouraged to make arrangements with our marketing team to review data from our social media and website analytics. * Contact Dave Gerdes: DaveG@happyvalley.com
9.) An organization may file a grant request in any one or more of the categories referenced on the Grant Application.
10.) Nothing shall prevent the granting entity, TGRC, from withholding part or all of the total monies available for annual awards should the granting entity feel that insufficient requests have been made to justify exhaustion of those funds. Should funds be remaining at the end of any single fiscal year, those funds may be rolled forward into the following year for granting consideration.
11.) It should not be presumed that any applicant will be awarded a grant on an annual basis, nor should the availability of these grant awards be considered an annual part of any applicant’s budget.
12.) An organization must have their prior year(s) final report completed and approved before the TGRC considers a new grant application, unless given an extension.
13.) The Tourism Grant Review Committee (TGRC) shall be composed of five (5) members: Two Centre County Commissioners, President/CEO of The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, one Board appointed Centre County Hotel General Manager, and the President of the Centre County Historical Society. These community members shall ideally be citizens outside of the board of directors of any of the applicant organizations or events. Any TGRC member with a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict, may not participate in the review of, or decision on, any grant request for which such a conflict exists and are mandated to remove his or herself from the review and/or decision-making process of the grant application they are associated with. If a TGRC member must be excused, the HVAB chairperson may appoint an alternate to replace him/her. The TGRC will make the final granting decision, which must be ratified by The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau Board of Directors who carry the fiduciary responsibility as mandated in Act 18 of 2016.
14.) The TGRC shall be charged with making certain each award meets and or exceeds the established criteria. The TGRC shall present each of their final recommendations for awards to the HVAB Board of Directors for ratification on an individual basis.
15.) Grant awards shall be presented jointly by the Centre County Board of Commissioners and the HVAB.