Thirty-six applicants, seeking nearly a half a million dollars, submitted project suggestions to use $225,000 in Local Option Sales Tax revenue. The LOST advisory board will review the applications and make their decision by early May. Awards will begin The chart here lists the 36 applicants in the order their proposal was received by the Plymouth County auditor's office. LOST revenue is collected as a one-penny sales tax. The LOST was established in 2001 with the primary purpose of paying for more than half of the construction of the Plymouth County Law Enforcement Center. Any money collected above the construction costs in the LOST's 15 years of existence are to go for community betterment projects. This grant selection process is part of that effort. [Click to enlarge]

These are just a few of the 36 projects that county groups are seeking money for through the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) grant program.

This year, the county set aside $225,000 of LOST revenue to be dished out in grants that would better the county's communities.

Groups are asking for more than double that amount -- a total of $462,250 -- for such projects. Now it's up to an advisory board to decide how to divide out the dollars.

This year's grant selection process will rank applications putting the most weight on those addressing "Quality of Life," followed by "Public Safety," then "Educational Opportunities," and, fourthly, "Public Health/Communications."

The nine-member advisory board will begin their deliberations on how to allocate the funds soon, and awards will likely be announced at the end of April or early May. Funds will be awarded July 1, 2008 and must be used by June 30, 2009. Applications were due March 14.

The requests range in size from $300 for an awning over the door of Four Seasons Bait and Tackle shop to $41,330 to build a new first aid station at the Plymouth County Fair. Some groups would use LOST dollars to supplement other money, and in all, the applications include a total of $1.4 million in proposed projects.

A few other big projects include adding restrooms to the Le Mars Community Theatre Playhouse by renovating space there, building larger handicapped-accessible bathrooms on the ground floor at Remsen St. Mary's School, adding an online Parental Access Support System (PASS) at Gehlen Catholic School, adding improvements to the Akron Historical Society including an access ramp and outside lighting, building a Brunsville Veterans' Memorial, establishing a before- and after-school program at Kissinger Elementary School in Merrill and buying a new ambulance for the Oyens Ambulance squad.

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For a full list of the applicants and projects, see the chart on page 3.

Last year the LOST advisory board allocated $275,000 in LOST revenue for 25 projects. That was trimmed back from 49 groups seeking more than $915,000 in all.

Members of the LOST advisory board include: Jim Hopkins, Blaine Donaldson, Patty Hansen, Linda Popken, Craig Arnold, Mark Loutsch, Norine Harvey, Patricia Vondrak and Dave Dirks. The board members are volunteers, appointed by the Plymouth County supervisors.