Hometown Pride Application (Single Communities)

Thank you for your interest in Hometown Pride!

Applications are due Friday, May 15, 2026 at 5 pm.

Applications are accepted by invitation only – invitations have been extended to qualifying communities who submitted a “statement of interest” in early 2026. Applications will be reviewed by Keep Iowa Beautiful to determine who will be accepted to the program. Please note: Space is limited and we are not able to accept all qualified applicants.

To complete your application, please submit the form below by the deadline.

Important – please read:

Important: This application is for towns that are applying on their own, not as part of a regional group application. Only the towns of Newell, Palo and Alburnett should be using this form. If that’s not you – please contact us to get the link to the correct form.
As part of the application, you must include a city council resolution based on the template provided here: Resolution for Hometown Pride Application 2026 (Individual Community) Resolutions that do not use the template will not be accepted (minor modifications and formatting changes are ok, as long as the meaning of the text remains unchanged).

Additional Resources:

Hometown Pride application readiness checklist, program benefits and expectations
Hometown Pride informational flyer
Hometown Pride powerpoint presentation
Hometown Pride success stories

Please contact us with any questions.

Hometown Pride Application – 2026 (Single Community Application)

Application deadline: Friday, May 15, 2026 at 5 pm. Please complete the application below to be considered for participation in Hometown Pride in 2026. If necessary, Keep Iowa Beautiful may request additional information or clarifications from applicants after the deadline in order to make its decision. (Please note that submitting this application is not a guarantee of acceptance – this is a competitive application process and we are not able to accept all applicants.)

Contact Information for Individual Completing the Application

Name (First and Last)(Required)

Title and Organization(Required)

Location (Town, County)(Required)

Email(Required)

Phone Number

Community Readiness

Name of Community Applying(Required)

Please describe how you expect Hometown Pride to benefit your town and why you support participation (1-3 paragraphs)(Required)

Please consider the primary goals of the Hometown Pride program: 1. Cultivate Local Leadership; 2. Enhance Community Amenities; 3. Foster Civic Pride; 4. Boost Economic Vitality; 5. Increase Cross-Sector Collaboration (Limit 1,500 characters)

Program Readiness: It's important that community members are ready to put in the work to make the Hometown Pride program a success. Please describe your community's "readiness" – why do you believe that the community is ready to begin the Hometown Pride program at this particular moment in time (1-3 paragraphs).(Required)

Consider factors such as: local enthusiasm and commitment for the Hometown Pride program, existing assets that will help support success, existing plans or initiatives that have laid groundwork for community betterment work, existing organizations that have committed to support Hometown Pride, or community need (Limit 1,500 characters)

Commitments

Funder(s): What organization or entity will fund the $2,500 annual "match" fee? Please note that this is an annual participation fee, not a one-time payment.(Required)

If you have multiple funders, please list each funder along with the amount they will contribute annually.

City Council Resolution (upload as a PDF) – Your city government must pass a city council resolution affirming their endorsement of the application and their financial contribution. You must use the resolution template provided (template linked below).(Required)

Max. file size: 128 MB.

For your convenience, the link to the resolution template is provided here (copy and paste into browser): https://keepiowabeautiful.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Resolution-for-Hometown-Pride-Application-2026-individual-community-1.docx. Minor modifications to the resolution template (such as changes in formatting) are accepted, as long as the content is not meaningfully altered.

Other funders (private organizations, businesses): If other funders are contributing to the $2,500 annual contribution, please include a signed funding commitment from their board of directors, CEO/director, or whoever is able to obligate the organization to the payment. Please ensure that funders understand that the payment amount is per year, rather than a one-time funding need. (If you do not have other funders, you may skip this field)

Max. file size: 128 MB.

Champions & Partners

Identify 2-3 individuals in your town who will commit to be a “champion” for Hometown Pride if selected for participation (this can include the person filling out this form). A champion will help initiate the program in their community by participating in the process of selecting a Hometown Pride “coach,” connecting the coach with local leaders and assisting with volunteer recruitment (Expected time commitment: 1-3 hours per month for 9 months).

Champion 1 (name, title, organization and email address):(Required)

Champion 2 (name, title, organization and email address):(Required)

Optional: Champion 3 (name, title, organization and email address):

Please describe existing prominent organizations in your community that do work that complements the mission of Hometown Pride (for example – service clubs, betterment group, chamber of commerce, park committee, etc). How will the Hometown Pride program complement existing efforts by these organizations?(Required)

You do not need to list every organization, just those that you expect Hometown Pride would be likely to partner with or coordinate with. (Limit 1,000 characters.)

Additional Support

Letters of support – Please provide 2-3 letters of support from other local or regional organizations who endorse this application to Hometown Pride. Do not include letters from city government. Letter of support (1):(Required)

Max. file size: 128 MB.

Letter of support (2)(Required)

Max. file size: 128 MB.

Letter of support (3) – optional

Max. file size: 128 MB.

Optional: If applicable, please describe any additional support you have for this application that has not already been noted above. This may include endorsements or promises of future support from local or regional organizations. (If all support has already been noted above, you may leave this blank)

Hometown Pride Application (Single Communities)

Hometown Pride Application – 2026 (Single Community Application)

Contact Information for Individual Completing the Application

Community Readiness

Commitments

Champions & Partners

Additional Support

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