Windy Gap Environmental Fund ~ Letter of Intent (LOI)
INTRODUCTION
The Windy Gap Environmental Fund, a fund of the Grand Foundation (WGEF) is requesting letters of intent from qualified 501©3 organizations (applicants that do not have that designation are encouraged to collaborate with nonprofits) to apply for funding from the Windy Gap settlement dollars.
The program will tap into $10 Million (of which $4.5 Million has been awarded to date) now available through a federal appeals court settlement agreement between the Municipal Subdistrict, Northern Water and the plaintiffs who challenged the Windy Gap Firming Project permit in federal court. Over the life of the WGEF, $15 Million will be available for grants.
Grants are available to 501©3 non-profit organizations to fund projects that improve aquatic and riparian habitat or water quality in the Colorado River upstream from Windy Gap Reservoir and below to its confluence with Williams Fork. Evaluators will consider projects that address impacts caused by the Windy Gap Project such as increased Colorado River water temperatures, sediment transport and aquatic health, as well as nutrient levels in the Three Lakes. Funding will also be considered for proposals that provide benefits such as improving aquatic species diversity, reducing silt releases from Windy Gap Reservoir, reducing rooted vegetation, improving fish movement and enhancing waterfowl and migratory birds’ habitat. Projects that address wildfire, wildfire resilience and post-fire restoration, drought resilience or maintenance of groundwater levels are of interest as well.
Pilot, design, and phased projects will be considered, and funding is commensurate with project benefits to the watershed. Grant money will be used for the design, construction and maintenance of awarded projects. Matching, challenge, or collaborative requests are encouraged.
A six-member committee consisting equally of Municipal Subdistrict representatives and lawsuit plaintiffs will collaboratively choose the projects that receive funding.
The committee will consider the geographic distribution of the projects when making funding decisions but is not prioritizing any sub-watershed or stream segment at this time. The committee wants to leverage the grant allocations to create the highest impact in terms of environmental restoration and geographic scope and encourages long-range planning in project development.
Letters of Intent (LOI) are due no later than June 26th. It is anticipated that the notifications of the selected LOI to application awarding will be November 2026.
INQUIRIES
This letter of interest (LOI) is issued by the Grand Foundation. All LOIs should be delivered to:
Grand Foundation
PO Box 1342
Winter Park, CO 80482
Attn: Megan Ledin, Executive Director
Or email megan@grandfoundation.com
QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED
The applicant must be a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Code, and “not a private foundation,” within the meaning of Code Section 509(a), or in the absence of such a determination, that you are a state or any political subdivision thereof within the meaning of Code Section 170(c)(1), or a state college or university within the meaning of Code Section 511(a)(2)(B) (referred to hereafter as a “Public Charity”).
LOI CONTENT
Below are items requested for the Letter of Intent (LOI), which will be required moving forward to be invited to apply for an WGEF grant. Please review the grant guidelines prior to completion.
• Eligibility - Please include your organization name, as well as your mission and philosophy.
• Project – Describe your team’s project. What it entails, including impacts in the geographic area.
• Evaluation Plan – Based on the limited information in this LOI, please sketch a preliminary evaluation design and methods for the project. How would you implement your proposed plan? Create a preliminary evaluation timeline, including plans for future maintenance beyond the grant, for these activities including timing of project and indicate person(s) responsible.
• If the project is on private land, please explain how you can guarantee future sustainability/permanency of the project and investment(s) WGEF is making. (i.e. conservation easements or deed restrictions)
• Please include a statement of need explaining why you need funding.
• Please describe the expected outcomes for the program or project.
• Please describe the approach to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed project to address expected environmental benefits.
• Provide information the WGEF Committee believes would assist them in their evaluation process.
• A current Certificate of Good Standing from the Colorado Secretary of State.
• Preliminary project budget, including funding participants and estimates of subsequent phases, if applicable.
TIME REQUIREMENTS
The following deadlines are presently anticipated:
Letter of Intent deadline June 26, 2026
Notification to prepare project application September 2026
Application Deadline October 2, 2026
Committee to Review October 2026
Grant/Contract Awarded November/December 2026
EVALUATION PROCESS
The WGEF Committee will judge the merits of LOIs received in accordance with the criteria discussed in the introduction. The organization is responsible for providing all information requested in the LOI and failure to do so may result in disqualification of the process. During the evaluation process, the WGEF Committee may request the organization to complete an oral presentation or answer further questions about their project.
RIGHT TO REJECT
The WGEF Committee and the Grand Foundation reserves the right to reject any or all LOIs and accepts no responsibility for the cost of the LOI preparation.