Heritage Quarter says it won $1 million Route 66 grant for visitor enhancements

Heritage Quarter representatives told the LaSalle County Tourism Committee on Feb. 20 that the bureau was awarded a Route 66 centennial grant and received the maximum amount available for visitor enhancements.

"So we did get, they announced the Route 66 grant… 1,000,000," Kate said while describing the award as intended for visitor enhancements such as statues and murals rather than advertising. She said the bureau received the largest grant of the state bureaus applying for centennial funding.

Kate also updated the committee on an ambassador training/certification she’s launching and on upcoming outreach at a Travel Adventure consumer show where LaSalle County will have a booth. She asked committee members to stop by the table and help distribute information about county attractions.

Committee members congratulated Kate and the bureau on the award and briefly discussed how the grant funds are expected to be spent in the county’s Route 66 communities.

No specific project-level spending decisions tied to the Route 66 grant were recorded in the committee’s Feb. 20 meeting notes; Kate said the funds are for visitor enhancements and specifically noted they are "not to be used for advertising."