Carney announces $7M to be awarded in tourism industry investments
Gov. John Carney and the Delaware Division of Small Business announced Nov. 15 that the State of Delaware will be investing over $7 million as part of the recovery effort in travel, tourism and outdoor recreation industries.
The funds are part of the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s $750 million American Rescue Plan Travel, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation program, which provides $510 million in state tourism grants and $240 million in competitive tourism grants that will be awarded to advance the economic recovery and resiliency of communities where the travel, tourism and outdoor recreation industries were hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. Department of Commerce awarded $510 million state tourism grants. Delaware received over $7 million of those funds.
Requests for proposals are now live on bids.delaware.gov for the travel, tourism and outdoor recreation industries. Funds being awarded include: $1,000,000, or approximately $333,333 per county, devoted to marketing efforts to provide recovery and resiliency to the areas that drive Delaware’s tourism industry; $1,500,000, approximately $500,000 per county, devoted to parks and recreation to increase accessibility at parks and create more opportunities for Wi-Fi; and $5,250,000 to be divided among three to five projects for a commercial corridor challenge for organizations to offer creative solutions to help the tourism industry thrive now and withstand future disasters.
“These funds will provide necessary support to the tourism industry that was hard hit during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Carney. “Delaware’s $3.5 billion tourism industry employs over 44,000 Delawareans and we need to band together to come up with solutions that help the industry recover and prepare it for future challenges. We’re grateful to our partners in the federal government, Secretary Raimondo and others, who have given us this opportunity.”
“Rebuilding the travel and tourism industry is a key component of the Biden administration’s plan to build back better and restore the competitiveness of the United States on the global stage,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo. “The state tourism grants give states and territories the flexible opportunity to boost their local tourism industry and ensure that jobs are restored and tourists return safely.”
Interested tourism entities can review the RFP and apply at bids.delaware.gov.
The deadline for proposals is Friday, Dec. 3, and awardees will be notified in late December. Proposed projects will be ineligible to apply if they are included in any other American Rescue Plan funding request. Construction projects require compliance with NEPA and Davis Bacon as well as local environmental regulations. All projects will require EDA pre-approval. No projects will be considered on a retroactive basis.
