Tourism grants awarded

A total of 15 rural Nevada communities will receive grants for 20 projects in what Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt says is the first program specifically aimed at stimulating local tourism.

The grants, awarded through the Nevada Commission on Tourism and Nevada Commission on Economic Development, total $200,000.

Among the winners was Carson City's Children's Museum of Northern Nevada, which will get $1,000 for a jester sign.

The two largest grants -- for $18,000 each -- went to Caliente's Rail City restoration project and Ely's "Tribute to Our Leaders" mural.

Hunt said the Rural Tourism Development Grants program was created by bringing the tourism and economic development agencies together. The idea is to help smaller Nevada communities bring in new business.

"In Nevada, tourism and economic development go hand in hand and we needed a way to assist rural communities with building and improvement projects that will help attract more visitors," she said.

She said she and officials of those agencies will seek funding to continue the program when the 2003 Legislature meets.

The projects and the amounts awarded are:

-- Battle Mountain -- $10,000 for "Armpit of America" gateway signs and display racks at the Civic Center

-- Beatty -- $12,500 for a kiosk

-- Blue Diamond -- $13,714 for the Blue Diamond Hill interpretive project, including two kiosks and six historical monuments along the Old Spanish Trail

-- Caliente -- $18,000 for Rail City restoration adding benches, lighting and other amenities to make the community more attractive and for the printing of brochures

-- Carlin -- $17,000 to develop phase two of the Nevada Gold Mining Interpretive Center

-- Carson City -- $1,000 for a jester sign at the Children's Museum of Northern Nevada

-- Ely -- $18,000 to produce "A Tribute to Our Leaders" mural by a renowned artist at the city's Outdoor Cultural Art Gallery of murals

-- Ely -- $2,840 for a sidewalk from the White Pine Public Museum to Cherry Creek Depot and a redwood ramp

-- Goldfield -- $9,404 for the Goldfield Downtown Beautification project, including gas lights, park benches, planters and landscaping

-- Lovelock -- $5,000 to complete the Historic Train Depot project

-- Lovelock -- $6,425 for construct a kiosk and historic corridor displays

-- Shurz -- $8,500 to enhance the Walker River Park and cultural facilities

-- Stateline -- $10,610 to enhance the Tahoe Meadows Trail Head with two kiosks and panels showing a map of the Tahoe Rim Trail from the meadows to Spooner summit, offering trail information and recognizing donors who helped build the trail

-- Tonopah -- $5,600 for 10 new glass display cases for the Tonopah Historic Mining Park

-- Tonopah -- $11,456 for a piped water system to fill ballast tanks on gliders at the Tonopah Airport.

-- Wells -- $9,961 to improve the rodeo grounds with water lines, valves, sewer lines, fencing, concrete flooring, walls and other amenities

-- Winnemucca -- $10,000 to design, build and install a lighted visitor information kiosk

-- Winnemucca -- $1,800 to purchase signs, posts, concrete and other materials to identify 30 historic points of interest in the city's walking tour

-- Yerington -- $17,349 to complete final plans and construction of the Lyon County Tourism Information Kiosk program

-- Yerington -- $10,841 to design and construct the Mountain View Park Gazebo and equip it to handle concerts and other public events.