Great Outdoors Colorado on Friday awarded more than $14 million to nine Colorado communities as part of the Inspire Initiative, which funnels lottery money and partner funds into parks, trails and programs that get kids and families outside.

The second round of Inspire funding follows $13.5 million awarded to six pilot communities in December 2016.

The nine communities winning grants on Friday are expected to serve more than 43,000 kids and create almost 1,000 youth and community jobs.

Denver’s Cole neighborhood group — called My Outdoor Colorado Cole — leads the awards with almost $2.2 million. The grant will support improvements at Russell Square Park and programs that will “use a culturally relevant context to deepen outdoor skills and knowledge, practice nature inclusion, and increase feelings of natural connection among members of the Cole community,” according to a GOCO press release.

The Montezuma Land Conservancy gets more than $1.8 million for programs in southwest Colorado’s Cortez, Dolores, Mancos and Towaoc communities. The funding will focus on middle school and high school kids, with a focus on field trips, transportation, outdoor gear and opportunities for outdoor learning.

Delta County’s The Nature Connection gets $1.7 million for programs at the Delta County and Montrose County school districts that will integrate outdoor experience into new programs and develop a local gear library. Delta County’s Youth Outdoor Network will develop paid internships and Hotchkiss will see new mountain bike trails.

The city of Sheridan gets $1.7 million for a coalition worked to break down barriers to the outdoors. The grant will support better access to outdoor spaces and create new outdoor areas at Alice Terry Elementary School and Fort Logan Northgate Elementary.

Garfield County gets $1.6 million for Parachute, Battlement Mesa, Rifle, Silt and New Castle to help improve youth access to the outdoors with programs at Garfield County School District 16 and Garfield Re-2 providing hands-on outdoor education, wilderness skills and science classes as well expeditionary learning opportunities around the Colorado River.

The City of Westminster’s POWER-PODER group – which stands for “Promoting the Outdoors Through Wellness, Education and Recreation” and “Promoviendo Oportunidades de Educación Recreativas” gets $1.4 million to improve park and open space access in Westminster, Arvada and unincorporated Adams County. The group plans park improvements along Little Dry Creek in the England Park Corridor, with community gardens and better pedestrian access along with programs designed to gather community and introduce kids to nature-based careers.

Eagle County gets $1.4 million for the Eagle Valley Outdoor Movement coalition, which aims to improve outdoor recreation opportunities for less affluent families in Edwards. The group plans to develop “nature play areas” and better bike access in Lake Creek Village and Eagle River Village mobile home park.

The City of Colorado Springs gets $1.4 million for the Out the Door! Pikes Peak group, which will target the Hillside neighborhood with better education and access to outdoor spaces. The funding will support the renovation of the Prospect Lake Beach House into a launching point for outdoor education and a gear library. Fountain Park will get a new bike park and School District 11 will get outdoor education programs.

The City of Alamosa’s Recreation Inspires Opportunity, or Alamosa RIO!, gets $869,000 to foster outdoor education with better trails at Alamos Ranch. Friends Park, which is adjacent to the Boys & Girls Club of the San Luis Valley’s clubhouse, will see interactive features like treehouses, a zipline, an improved bike track and a music garden. The Boys & Girls Club will build an outdoor classroom near Smith Reservoir.







