January 25, 2011

Connections Awards Grants for Economic Development

On Friday, January 21, the advisory committee of CONNECTIONS held its annual winter gala and grant awards ceremony at Art Works on Main in downtown Mansfield. The committee’s 2010 grant focus was on programs that support economic development. Grants were awarded to the following organizations:

Downtown Mansfield, Inc. – Final Friday Concert Series – $1,500
Grant dollars will support this on-going program by providing additional capital equipment to expand programming and improve the infrastructure of the site. The concert series is part of Downtown Mansfield’s effort to revitalize the downtown area. Proceeds of the concert series are given back to the local business owners to improve the exterior facade of their businesses.

Mansfield-Richland County Public Library – MRCPL Mobile Notebook Lab – $2,500
Grant dollars will purchase three laptop computers that will be used in response to the great demand for assistance in computer literacy and to identify opportunities online for work-readiness and career development. The Library will take their computer lab “on the road” to assist as many people as possible in the outlying areas of Richland County.