SCRANTON — Local municipalities, youth arts and sports organizations, volunteer fire companies and other recipients will benefit from $100,000 in grant funding Lackawanna County commissioners recently awarded through the county’s popular Community Re-Invest Program.

Commissioners Thom Welby, Bill Gaughan and Chris Chermak voted last week to authorize $5,000 grants to 20 applicants in the first of two rounds of CRP funding officials plan this year. The second application window opens in July and closes Oct. 30, per the county.

Established in 2013, the program provides grants that municipalities, nonprofits, community groups and public service organizations use to help bring projects and initiatives to fruition, usually complementing private funding or money from other sources. In that sense, it serves as a “last-mile funding source that helps organizations complete projects that strengthen neighborhoods, improve public facilities, enhance public safety, expand recreational and educational opportunities and overall improve quality of life for residents and visitors,” county Economic Development Director Tom Carlucci said.

“These awards help ensure that community-serving organizations and municipalities can complete projects that might otherwise be delayed or remain unfunded while creating visible and measurable benefits across the county,” he said.

Grant recipients and project descriptions, provided by the county, include:

Lackawanna Blind Association: for a technology improvement project.

Olyphant Hose Company 2: to support a building addition.

Pioneer Performing Arts Center, Carbondale: for a “youth musical theatre education & community performance initiative.”

Mayfield Borough: for mulch at borough playgrounds.

Scott Twp. Hose Company: to update the company’s Jaws of Life equipment.

North Pocono Dandy Lion Little League: for a softball property storm drainage project.

Moscow Borough: to purchase equipment for a street maintenance and infrastructure improvement project.

PAWsitively for the Animals: to support a pet food redistribution program that’s expanding capacity.

Moosic Redwings Softball: for field cleanup and maintenance.

Dickson City American Legion Post 665: for a new “handicap entry door hand swipe” and a new shed.

Taylor Borough: for a veterans memorial monument improvement project.

Lackawanna River Conservation Association: for a riverfront maintenance building door replacement.

Discovery Montessori, Scranton: for a new balcony railing at the Sanctuary Theater.

Taylor Community Library: to improve a dedicated space at the library for teenagers.

Youth Arts Coalition, Scranton: for a youth theater technical training and equipment initiative.

West Scranton Wrestling Alumni Association: for a veteran and retired police memorial.

Scott Twp.: for an automated external defibrillator, or AED, replacement project.

Intercept Martial Arts Inc., Scranton: to support the “Legendary Jab Club.”

North Pocono Cultural Society: to support a “Dickens Downtown Christmas” event in December.

St. Cats and Dogs of Scranton: to purchase equipment.

In all but three of those cases, the $5,000 grants will defray but not completely cover the total cost of the individual projects they support.

The public/private partnership investment for the first round of 2026 CRP grants is about $193,175 — the combined total cost of all 20 projects, county officials noted in a press release. Since the program’s inception in 2013, it’s nearly $26.6 million.

Information on the Community Re-Invest Program and how to apply is available online at lackawannacounty.org by clicking the “Economic Development” link under the “Government” tab at the top of the website.