There’s a lot of fanfare around grant awards, but what happens after the ceremonial checks are presented and the reporters have published their articles? Our partners get down to business.
For 25 years, GOCO has improved Colorado’s great outdoors with the help of Colorado Lottery profits. We’ve put more than $1 billion in proceeds back into 5,000 projects to improve the lives of Coloradans across the state.
After projects are awarded funding, grant recipients have about two years to make their projects happen. In February, six projects crossed the finish line, representing more than $5.3 million GOCO invested in communities across the state. Scroll to see if one’s near you:
Doig Homestead Open Space
$675,000 GOCO grant to Summit County
Summit County purchased the 272-acre Doig Homestead property with the help of GOCO funding. The property sits upland of Green Mountain Reservoir, is visible from Highway 9, and contains important deer and elk habitat, much like the rest of the conserved land along the reservoir. The county will lease out parts of the property for cattle grazing and hay production and may eventually allow public access to reach trails in the adjacent national forest.
Learn more about our open space grant program
Heartland Ranch Preserve Expansion
$310,700 GOCO grant to Southern Plains Land Trust
GOCO funded SPLT’s acquisition of nearly 7,000 acres to expand its Heartland Ranch Nature Preserve in Bent County. This property is home to species like mule deer, elk, coyote, badger, burrowing owl, and a host of others, all of which thrive within the landscape of shortgrass prairies, rock-covered mesas, perennial springs, and juniper forests. This new acquisition was combined with an adjacent 10,540-acre property to create an 18,000-acre preserve, allowing SPLT to better manage and conserve the land and providing an opportunity to attract even more tourism in the future.
Learn more about conservation easements and their importance
Horsetooth Foothills Conservation Project
$4,000,000 GOCO grant to Larimer County
With the help of GOCO funding, Larimer County, in partnership with the City of Fort Collins, was able to conserve 2,182 acres of land across four separate properties as part of GOCO’s Protect Initiative. These acquisitions provide connectivity to more than 5,700 acres of wildlife habitat and public recreation areas, such as Horsetooth Mountain Open Space, Coyote Ridge Natural Area, Devil’s Backbone Open Space, and the Blue Sky Trail Corridor. This grant also helped protect mountain lion, mule deer, black bear, several species of bird, and endangered small mammal and butterfly species that are found there.
Read more about GOCO’s Protect Initiative
Las Colonias Park Riparian Restoration
$29,400 GOCO grant to the City of Grand Junction
With this funding, the City of Grand Junction, in partnership with Ducks Unlimited and Tamarisk Coalition, restored 25 acres of habitat adjacent to the Colorado River at Las Colonias Park. GOCO funds specifically went to re-establishing a native wetland community after the river’s channels and banks were reshaped. The wetland habitat will support endangered bird and fish species whose access to the area was previously restricted.
Learn about another recent habitat restoration project GOCO funded
Ouray Hot Springs Pool Project
$275,281 GOCO grant to the City of Ouray
The City of Ouray used its GOCO funding to update the iconic Ouray Hot Springs Pool, an institution in the city for over 90 years. The previous facilities were outdated and could no longer serve the community effectively. Major updates included a new hot pool with islands, a children’s area, an activity pool with a climbing wall, a waterslide pool, a lap pool, and new decks and infrastructure.
Learn more about GOCO’s LPOR and mini grant programs
Wallace Park Gazebo
$45,000 GOCO grant to the City of Victor
With GOCO funding, the City of Victor was able to add a gazebo in Wallace Park. Previously, the park had no sheltered areas, and the gazebo serves park-goers by providing a covered space for events and protection from the elements.