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Port of Burlington receives $10,000 grant from Alliant Energy Foundation


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Rebuilding Our Communities Grant will help Welcome Center with flood recovery efforts

The Port of Burlington is the centerpiece of the Burlington riverfront and serves as the front door that greets thousands of visitors to the community and to the State each year. The Port of Burlington Welcome Center is located on the Mississippi River in the historic Port of Burlington building. However, record flooding in June caused the Mississippi to come over its banks and fill the Welcome Center with more than four feet of water.

Welcome Center staff worked to remove as many items as possible, but with water rising quickly, many items had to be left. After the water receded, staff and volunteers cleaned out the debris and hired a professional cleaning service to sanitize the center. A temporary welcome center has been set up in downtown Burlington offering limited services.

The Port of Burlington Welcome Center provides information to visitors about local restaurants, hotels and shopping – a great benefit to local businesses. The center typically greets 12,000 visitors annually and more than 5,000 of those visits are in the summer. However, visitor numbers have dropped by 70 percent this summer compared to the same period last year.

Now, thanks to a $10,000 grant from the Alliant Energy Foundation, the Port of Burlington Welcome Center will be able to offset a portion their recovery costs due to the flood damage. The dollars are coming from the Foundation’s Rebuilding Our Communities Grant Program. The program was established to provide unrestricted grants to help non-profit groups throughout Alliant Energy’s utility service territory with recovery from this summer’s flooding.

“We are committed to helping our communities rebuild,” said Tom Aller, President-Interstate Power and Light Company, an Alliant Energy company. “The Alliant Energy Foundation wants to help the Port of Burlington Welcome Center through this tough time so it can continue to promote Iowa cities to visitors.”

The Alliant Energy Foundation has allocated $1 million for the Rebuilding Our Communities Grant Program. Non-profit groups in Alliant Energy’s utility service territory can apply through October 1st for $5,000, $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000 unrestricted flood recovery grants.

Non-profit groups can request funds by submitting a brief application form explaining their need and the population they serve that was affected by the flooding. A determination of grant eligibility will be made within 14 days of submission.

To be eligible, an organization must be a registered non-profit organization as defined by Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Service Code. Organizations are encouraged to review eligibility guidelines before applying. Government entities (i.e. schools and public libraries) are not eligible for this program.



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