Conservation Fund Grant Program

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The Conservation Fund Grant Program offers grants to nonprofit organizations and local governmental units for the purchase of land or land interests identified in the Dane County Parks & Open Space Plan. Dane County has offered Conservation Fund grants since 2000 and is proud to be a partner in the permanent protection of thousands of acres throughout Dane County. Properties protected with Conservation Fund grants can be viewed on DCiMap by selecting the Conservation Fund Grant Property layer under Parks & Recreation 

The application process for the 2026 Conservation Fund Grant Program has changed from previous years. Important information for applicants to know: 

1. The 2026 grant award cap is increased from 50% to 75% of project costs. Requests will be evaluated case-by-case on factors including but not limited to project eligibility, matching funds secured by applicant, available funding, budget outlook and alignment with program priorities. Applicants may request more than 75% of project costs, and in this case applications must include a rationale for the increased funding. Grant awards above 75% of eligible costs will be the exception, and some awards may be less than 75%.

2. Organizations submitting more than one application must prioritize their projects and clearly indicate their order of importance.

3. There are two application deadlines: April 1st and September 1st (note that application deadlines and frequency may change in future years). 

• Applications will be reviewed and ranked by staff in the Land & Water Resources Department using the evaluation questions contained in the application materials.  
• The application ranking and proposed grant awards will be presented to the Dane County Park Commission for consideration and applicants will be required to present their projects to the Park Commission. 

4. Tentative dates for presenting projects to the Park Commission for 2026: 

• April 1st deadline: May 27th presentation 
• September 1st deadline: October 14th presentation 

After the presentations, the Park Commission will convene in closed session to deliberate award recommendations- and the final list of award recommendations will be presented at the following Park Commission meeting 

5. Projects that have received an award recommendation by the Park Commission will then be introduced to the Dane County Board of Supervisors and County Executive by resolution for action.   

• Resolutions will not be introduced until the applicant has an accepted offer to purchase in place and has secured matching funds for the purchase.  
• County funds for a proposed grant award will be tentatively held for the project until the next application deadline.  Projects that have not advanced by the next application deadline will be re-ranked with the current application cycle.  
• If projects that have been approved by resolution have not been funded within one year, the application must be updated and re-submitted. Funding for a project is not formally encumbered until a resolution has been approved.