MotorCities-Automobile National Heritage Area Launches Two Grants Programs

DETROIT, April 3 -- Two grants programs have been created in order to support the efforts of local and regional partners to develop projects in support of MotorCities-Automobile National Heritage Area's (MotorCities-ANHA) mission of preserving, interpreting and promoting our rich automotive and labor history. They are designed to encourage community-based auto heritage initiatives in the Automobile National Heritage Area's Region, which encompasses Southeastern and Central Michigan including Metropolitan Detroit, north to Flint and west to Lansing and Jackson. Over $130,000 worth of new educational and visitor services in the region will be created through the MotorCities-ANHA Grants programs.

There are two available grants within this initiative, MotorCities-ANHA Grants and the MotorCities-ANHA Mini-Grants. Each of two grants programs are to sustain MotorCities-ANHA's recently completed General Management Plan and will fund projects that support one of the three MotorCities-ANHA Mission Goals:

1) expanding educational and interpretive opportunities associated with the region's auto industry;

2) encouraging revitalization efforts that preserve our rich auto and labor heritage; and

3) increasing tourism that is tied to the auto industry and its history.

MotorCities-ANHA Grants are available to organizations that are working with one of the 12 Stewardship Communities that have been supporting the efforts of MotorCities-ANHA. Stewardship Communities have multiple auto heritage resources within their boundaries, and they collaboratively support MotorCities-ANHA initiatives. There is $60,000 available for this grant through MotorCities-ANHA. With matching requirements, over $120,000 in new or improved auto heritage projects and programs will be generated.

MotorCities-ANHA Mini-Grants are available across the entire Automobile National Heritage Area Region. There are no matching requirements, and $10,000 is available for use on smaller, innovative and creative projects.

In this inaugural year, the MotorCities-ANHA Grants and Mini-Grants programs are generously funded by our local Founding Partners -- DaimlerChrysler Corporation, General Motors Corporation and Ford Motor Company -- and by contributors to our Board and Honorary Leadership Council Annual Appeal. For an application, just call MotorCities-ANHA at 313-259-3425 or go online to www.autoheritage.org .

Designated by the U.S. Congress in 1998 as an Affiliated Unit of the National Park System, MotorCities-ANHA helps citizens appreciate how the automobile changed Michigan, the nation and the world. MotorCities-ANHA strives to make Michigan's rich automotive heritage a source of pride for communities and a positive influence on the region's future. For additional information, please visit MotorCities-ANHA's web-site: www.autoheritage.org .