Fifteen Rural Economic Development Grant Recipients Announced in Kansas

Dec 24, 2025 

Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland today announced the Office of Rural Prosperity at the Department of Commerce has awarded $337,833 in Strategic Economic Expansion and Development (SEED) grants, supporting 15 quality-of-life projects across Kansas. The awards leveraged more than $744,186 in local contributions, bringing the total investment available for the projects to almost $1.1 million.

“Our small towns in Kansas are the heart of this state — they have character, history and most importantly, they have passion for growth,” Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland said. “Investing in these projects provides opportunities for smaller, rural communities to make themselves more appealing to their current and future residents as well as attract potential new businesses.”

Awardees of the grant represent communities with a population of 5,000 or less. They also commit to a minimum 10% match and to provide a completed project proposal within 12 months. The projects must be focused on economic development and revitalization efforts through one of the following quality-of-life categories: Childcare and Senior Programming, Community Vibrancy, Food Retail or Libraries.

The Kansas Office of Rural Prosperity had a special check presentation yesterday in Yates Center for the awardees. The 2025 SEED grant recipients by category:

Childcare and Senior Programming

• City of Larned, Pawnee County, $25,000: Developing a greenhouse for senior and youth programs at the Larned community garden
• Grow & Learn Childcare Center, Inc., Wichita County, $14,206: Enhancing a local playground and replacing the center’s washer and dryer
• Hiawatha Foundation for Economic Development, Brown County, $25,000: Furnishing the Natchez Street Café with ADA-compliant tables, chairs and booths
• LiveWell, Sherman County, $25,000: Building an outdoor play area for families in Goodland
• Seneca Downtown Impact, Inc., $11,986: Improving gathering spaces with portable picnic tables downtown as well as adding privacy fencing and improving parking for a daycare facility shared with small businesses

Community Vibrancy

• City of Alden, Rice County, $22,420: Installing two limestone monument entrance signs that read “Alden Welcomes You – Est. 1872”
• City of Clifton, Washington County, $25,000: Building a new and safe playground at the Berner Memorial Park
• Downtown Plainville, Inc., Rooks County, $25,000: Transforming vacant lots into a vibrant community space called “The Yard”
• Greeley County Community Development, Greeley County, $24,468: Assisting businesses with freshening their facades through paint, signage, windows and door replacements, landscaping, outdoor seating and masonry repairs
• Wallace County, $25,000: Adding new mulch, shade structures, a basketball backboard, picnic tables and other greenspace improvements to North Park in Sharon Springs
• Woodson County Revitalization, RevitalizeYC, Inc., $14,753: Creating a system for Yates Center and the historic town square that reduces logistical challenges of sourcing and integrating adequate equipment, enhance capacity and quality of event sound

Food Retail

• City of Isabel, Barber County, $25,000: Rehabilitating the Isabel Community Store with a new roof, interior replacements and new cooler
• City of Jewell, Jewell County, $25,000: Transforming a long-vacant building into a community micro-market and restaurant
• Phillips County, $25,000: Rehabilitating the only grocery store by updating the floors, sealing the metal roof and pouring concrete to replace the dirt floor

Libraries

• Madison Public Library, Greenwood County, $25,000: Renovating the library into a welcoming, updated and functional environment for all to utilize

Funding for the SEED program, which is administered by the Office of Rural Prosperity in the Kansas Department of Commerce, is provided through the Technology Enabled Fiduciary Financial Institutions (TEFFI) Development and Expansion Fund. The TEFFI Act was enacted in 2021 through bipartisan legislation to promote economic development throughout the state.

The SEED grant funds are one of the many tools provided by Commerce to support rural Kansas communities. To view the list of past SEED awardees and projects, click here.

Source: Fifteen Rural Economic Development Grant Recipients Announced - Kansas Department of Commerce