MARATHON NONPROFITS ENCOURAGED TO APPLY FOR FUNDING

The Marathon City Council has created a $100,000 fund for local nonprofits operating in the city. Grant applications are now being accepted for the 2023 fiscal year. To find further details and apply online, please visit the city’s website (ci.marathon.fl.us) and look in the “What’s Going On” box. The city will also accept completed applications on paper at City Hall. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, March 15.

Only organizations with proof of current nonprofit status and evidence of an established record of providing cultural, educational, recreational or social services within the city of Marathon will be considered.

When the application period closes, city staff and the Marathon City Council will rank the applicants. The council will make the final recommendations as well as determine the level of funding provided to each organization.

The council will discuss the applications at its April 11 meeting.

– Contributed

ALEX RICKERT alex@keysweekly.com

THE ‘RISE’ OF BEAUTIFUL BENCHMARKS

On Feb. 28, members of the Florida Keys Council of the Arts were treated to a presentation by Marathon Planning Director Brian Shea and artist Craig Gray during an installment of the council’s Gather ’Round culture series at Marathon City Hall. Using visual illustrations of sea level rise data and projections, Shea shared with participants the challenges soon to be faced by the city as it deals with higher water levels.

As part of the city’s plan to address the undeniable concerns of sea level rise, it will team up with Gray for an art installation, dubbed “Beautiful Benchmarks,” that will visually demonstrate sea level rise projections in low-lying vulnerable areas using large wave shapes carved out of granite, paired with data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

This project is the first in what the city hopes will become a series of grant- and city-funded public art installations throughout Marathon. Marathon is seeking additional grant funding to further expand the program and capitalize on opportunities for public art.

“‘Beautiful Benchmarks’ is an opportunity for the community to have a visual beacon and reminder that friends, neighbors and visitors alike have the chance to protect and conserve the very limited resources of our region for the future,” Gray wrote in his project approach narrative.