Gates Family Foundation Capital Grants

Gates Family Foundation

Mar 15, 2025

Carol Menard
303.722.1881
cmenard@gatesfamilyfoundation.org

Lisa Rucker
303.722.1881
lrucker@gatesfamilyfoundation.org

The Gates Family Foundation provides grants for capital campaigns including support for building purchase, construction, expansion, renovation, and/or land acquisition for Colorado organizations working in the following areas:

• Arts and Culture:
  Project examples include:
  • Libraries and museums
  • Performing arts organizations
  • Historic preservation that contributes to community revitalization
• Education:
  Project examples include:
  • High-performing charter schools seeking matching funds for a BEST grant
  • Rural schools improving an auditorium or athletic field for community use
  • Licensed early childhood education centers, particularly in underserved rural communities
  • GED, literacy, or vocational training centers
  • Independent school and public and private university capital campaigns (on a highly selective basis)
• Well-being of Children, Youth, and Families
  Project examples include:
  • Human service organizations promoting self-sufficiency
  • Community and senior centers
  • Family resource centers
  • Youth mentoring organizations
  • Transitional housing facilities
  • Job training
  • Capital projects for medical and dental facilities in remote rural areas with service to low-income populations (on a highly selective basis)
• Parks and Recreation
  Project examples include:
  • Land conservation and easement purchases
  • Greenways and trail systems
  • Outdoor/indoor recreation facilities
• Community Development and Revitalization:
  Project examples include:
  • Restoration of historically significant architecture that contributes to community revitalization
  • Development of rural main streets as a means of promoting economic health for rural areas
  • Public-private partnerships for economic development
  • Affordable housing, including emergency shelters and transitional housing

Priority consideration is given to projects in rural communities that face greater challenges in accessing funds for capital projects.

Applicants must be nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status, classified as a public charity under section 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2), and provide services benefiting the state of Colorado and its citizens.

Governmental entities may request funding in limited circumstances.

Colorado

Amounts are not specified. Past awards have ranged between $15,000 and $2,000,000.

Applicants should have commitments for approximately 30% of the funds needed to complete the project before submitting a capital grant application.

Information on the application process is available on the program website.

Applicants are encouraged to contact a program officer prior to submission to discuss the project and the substance of the proposal.

Capital funding · Child welfare · Children and youth · Clinics · Community and economic development · Frontier and remote areas · Healthcare facilities · Housing and homelessness · Human services · Infrastructure · Oral health · Physical activity · Schools · Self-sufficiency · Wellness, health promotion, and disease prevention · Colorado