From skate parks to climbing walls, the King County Youth Sports Facilities Grant Fund (YSFG) has helped build or renovate hundreds of public sports amenities in neighborhoods across the County at minimal taxpayer expense.

“Through strong partnerships with community groups, we are able to stretch limited resources to provide new or improved recreational facilities in the areas that need them the most,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.

Fund administrator, the Parks and Recreation Division of the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, is now accepting applications from qualified groups that partner with a public agency, such as a school district or city parks department, to develop or renovate sports facilities.

The YSFG Program provides matching grant funds of up to $75,000. Past grants have been awarded for athletic fields, skate parks, playgrounds, sport courts, and rowing facilities, among others. Grant requests range from $5,000 to $75,000.

The program is funded and sustained through a quarter of 1 percent of car rental taxes. The program also receives $25,000 annually from the YSFG endowment established with the sale of a county building.

The YSFG program has awarded roughly $11 million in grant funds to nearly 300 projects benefiting youth athletics in King County since its 1993 inception. In 2011, the program funded 13 projects totaling with nearly $685,000 in grant awards.

Applications for King County YSFG grants will be accepted until June 15, with letters of intent due May 4. Visit www.kingcounty.gov/parks and click on the YSFG link for an application packet.

For more information, contact Butch Lovelace, program manager, at 206-263-6267 or email at butch.lovelace@kingcounty.gov.