Staff Report
City Council
Item No. 5.D
Meeting Date: March 11, 2026
From: Kevin Biersack, Financial Services Director
Title: FY 2026/2027 Community Assistance Grant Process
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council approve proceeding with the FY 2026/2027 Community Assistance Grant Program.
BACKGROUND:
In the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026/2027 adopted budget, City Council approved a General Fund Community Assistance Grant Program of $70,000 to support requests for grants and sponsorships from community non-profit organizations and other governmental jurisdictions.
Staff will bring forth recommendations for final approval of the grant awards at the June 2026 Council meeting.
For this Community Assistance Grant Program, we receive between 10-30 applications. City Council awards grants totaling $70,000 ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. In order to apply for a FY 2026/2027 grant award, the FY2025/2026 awardees must communicate the implementation of the previously awarded funds. Staff recommends grant applications continue to be submitted for funding requests between $1,000 and $10,000.
DISCUSSION:
City Council has appointed Mayor Gregory and Councilmember Ross to the Ad Hoc subcommittee to review the applications and make recommendations to the full Council for formal action. Staff plans to advertise the program on Friday, March 13, 2026, and request grant applications be submitted by 5:00 pm PDT on Friday, April 17, 2026. Staff will then provide the applications for subcommittee review. The subcommittee will convene a meeting in May to review and make recommendations on which grants to fund. Once the subcommittee recommendations are finalized, the proposed grant awards will be presented to City Council for review and approval at the Wednesday, June 10, 2026, meeting.
Program Guidelines: To be considered for funding:
Applicants must be a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization or a tribal or governmental agency.
Applicants must be based in Cathedral City or demonstrate they provide services to residents or businesses of Cathedral City.
Applicants must be able to demonstrate they receive funding from other sources and are not solely relying on Cathedral City support.
Preference will be given to applicants meeting health and human service needs of underserved populations.
The grant program and grant application will be sent to local media and advertised on the City’s website, social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram and Nextdoor), and will be included on the Discover Cathedral City website -- See the attached Public Service Grant Application and the Notice of Publication for Grant Applications.
FISCAL IMPACT:
With this item included in the FY 2026/2027 adopted budget, there is no additional fiscal impact.
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN:
This action will further Goal C – Fiscal Stability and Sustainability Objective - Cathedral City has economically prospered by facilitating the investment of private dollars in high quality development which benefits the community. We remain financially solvent by instituting prudent fiscal policies and transparent financial practices.
ATTACHMENTS:
Notice of Publication for Grant Applications - FY2027
Community Assistance Grant Program Application