Established in 2000 to foster excellence, diversity and opportunity in the downtown Denver community, primarily in education and the arts. The Foundation is committed to making Riverfront Park and downtown Denver a better place to live.
Riverfront Park Community Foundation’s largest recent grant was a $150,000 award to Riverfront Park Master Assoc for the Summer Sessions Concert Series 2024, a clear signal that the foundation supports public-space programming as well as cultural activity. Established in 2000, it was created to foster excellence, diversity, and opportunity in the downtown Denver community, with a stated emphasis on education and the arts. Its recent grants also show sustained support for organizations that shape the Riverfront Park and downtown Denver area through events, arts platforms, youth services, and community programming. The foundation’s portfolio includes repeat support for groups such as Denver Biennial of Americas, Platte Forum, Museum of Contemporary Art, and Urban Peak, suggesting an ongoing relationship with Denver-based nonprofits rather than one-off project funding only. Grants are frequently directed to organizations serving residents and workers in Riverfront Park and downtown Denver, and the mix of arts, education, park activation, and human services reflects a place-based approach tied to the neighborhood itself. The foundation’s giving pattern also reaches into food security, homelessness services, and public art, showing a broad but locally focused community role.
Arts and culture are a major theme in the foundation’s grantmaking. It gave $30,000 in 2025 to Denver Biennial of Americas for art and culture platform hosting, and $25,000 in 2025 to Platte Forum for arts, culture, and humanities. It also supported Museum of Contemporary Art with $25,000 in 2023 and $20,000 in 2024 and 2025 for arts, culture, and humanities. Education appears alongside arts as a recurring priority. The foundation awarded $15,000 to Teach for America in 2024 for education and another $15,000 in 2023, while Denver Kids received $15,000 in both 2023 and 2024 for education. In human services, Urban Peak received $25,000 in 2025 and $20,000 in 2024 for human services, and Hope Center received $20,000 in both 2023 and 2024 for the same category. Food security and environmental/public-space work also appear in the recent grants list. WeDontWasteorg received $30,000 in 2024 and $25,000 in 2025 for food distribution, while The Greenway Foundation received $25,000 in 2023, 2024, and 2025 for environment-related work.
$348K
$2.2M
$311K
$341K
Most grants fall between $10K and $25K, with a median of $15K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$15K
75th Percentile
$25K
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Typical grants cluster around a mid-five-figure range, with p25 at $10,000, a median of $15,000, and p75 at $25,000. The recent list also includes larger project support, such as a $150,000 award. The same organizations appear across multiple years, including Denver Biennial of Americas, Platte Forum, WeDontWasteorg, The Greenway Foundation, Urban Peak, Hope Center, Teach for America, and Denver Kids, indicating recurring relationships rather than isolated awards. The foundation operates as a grantmaking foundation that accepts applications through the Colorado Common Grant Application for several programs, and its board reviews requests in fall cycles with some spring deferrals.
All listed recent grants go to Colorado recipients, and 100% of grants in the country distribution are in the US. The giving is concentrated in Denver, with the recipient city repeated across the grant list and the top state by grant count also Colorado. Named recipients include organizations in Denver serving Riverfront Park, downtown Denver, and the broader metro area. The geographic profile is local rather than regional or national.
Recent grants show support for arts and culture, education, human services, food distribution, park activation, public art, and environment-related projects. Named grants include support for art and culture platform hosting, food distribution, policies related to drug and mental health, and summer concert programming.
The distribution centers on moderate project grants: p25 is $10,000, median grant size is $15,000, and p75 is $25,000. The recent list also includes a larger $150,000 award, showing that the foundation makes both mid-sized and larger grants.
Several active programs use the Colorado Common Grant Application. The board reviews requests in fall cycles, and some requests may be deferred to spring when additional funds are available. The foundation also lists competitive general grant programs for nonprofit organizations.
Yes. The grantmaking is local, and the recipient city data show all recent grants going to Colorado organizations, with Denver as the repeated location. Active programs focus on Denver, Riverfront Park, metro Denver, and downtown Denver.
Yes. Several organizations appear in multiple years of the recent grants list. Examples include Denver Biennial of Americas, Platte Forum, WeDontWasteorg, The Greenway Foundation, Urban Peak, Hope Center, Teach for America, and Denver Kids.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Current and upcoming funding from Riverfront Park Community Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Nonprofit organizations (use Colorado Common Grant Application). Applicants should follow the Colorado Common Grant Application and submit required supplementary materials. Specific eligibility beyond nonprofit status not specified on page.
Deadline: Annual deadlines: September 1 (fall cycle) and March 1 (spring cycle).
Who can apply: Applicants submit the Colorado Common Grant Application with any supplementary materials. The foundation reviews grant requests for projects serving the community; specific eligibility restrictions are not stated in the scraped content.
Deadline: Application deadlines are September 1st and March 1st annually. Visible upcoming cycle deadlines: September 1, 2026 and March 1, 2027.
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Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverfront Park Master Assoc | Denver, CO | $150,000 | 2025 | Summer Sessions Concert Series 2024 |
| Denver Biennial of Americas | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 2025 | Art and Culture Platform Hosting |
| Platte Forum | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2025 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| The Greenway Foundation | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2025 | Environment |
| WeDontWasteorg | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2025 | Food Distribution |
| Urban Peak | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2025 | Human Services |
| Museum of Contemporary Art | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 2025 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Denver Art Museum | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2025 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Den Cntr for Performing Arts | Denver, CO | $12,500 | 2025 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| The Gathering Place | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2025 | Human Services: Women and Families |
| Clyfford Still Fndtn | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2025 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| WeDontWasteorg | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 2024 | Food Distribution |
| Platte Forum | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 2024 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| The Greenway Foundation | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2024 | Environment |
| Denver Biennial of Americas | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2024 | Art and Culture Platform Hosting |
| Museum of Contemporary Art | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 2024 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Hope Center | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 2024 | Human Services |
| Urban Peak | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 2024 | Human Services |
| Commons Park C&C of Denver | Denver, CO | $15,717 | 2024 | Park Activation-Public & Societal |
| Teach for America | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2024 | Education |
| Colorado Coalition-Homeless | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2024 | Homeless Services |
| Denver Kids | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2024 | Education |
| Den Cntr for Performing Arts | Denver, CO | $12,500 | 2024 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| The Gathering Place | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2024 | Human Services: Women and Families |
| AdvanceEDU | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2024 | Education |
| Clyfford Still Fndtn | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2024 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Book Trust | GreenwoodVillag, CO | $10,000 | 2024 | Giving all children access to books |
| Platte Forum | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 2023 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Denver Biennial of Americas | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2023 | Art and Culture Platform Hosting |
| The Greenway Foundation | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2023 | Environment |
| Museum of Contemporary Art | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2023 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Center City Collaborative | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 2023 | Policies re drug/mental health |
| Hope Center | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 2023 | Human Services |
| Commons Park C&C of Denver | Denver, CO | $15,815 | 2023 | Park Activation-Public & Societal |
| Urban Peak | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2023 | Human Services |
| Teach for America | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2023 | Education |
| Colorado Coalition-Homeless | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2023 | Homeless Services |
| Denver Kids | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2023 | Education |
| Think 360 Arts | Denver, CO | $15,000 | 2023 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Girls on the Run | GreenwoodVillag, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Education |
| Colorado Uplift | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Education |
| Kempe Foundation | Aurora, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Human Services |
| Book Trust | GreenwoodVillag, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Giving all children access to books |
| Denver Art Museum | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| Clyfford Still Fndtn | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2023 | Arts, Culture & Humanities |
| The Gathering Place | Denver, CO | $7,500 | 2023 | Human Services: Women and Families |
| Commons Park C&C of Denver | Denver, CO | $6,095 | 2023 | Community Garden-Public & Societal |
Riverfront Park Master Assoc
$150,000Summer Sessions Concert Series 2024
Denver Biennial of Americas
$30,000Art and Culture Platform Hosting
Human Services
Den Cntr for Performing Arts
$12,500Arts, Culture & Humanities
Denver Biennial of Americas
$25,000Art and Culture Platform Hosting
Hope Center
$20,000Human Services
Commons Park C&C of Denver
$15,717Park Activation-Public & Societal
Den Cntr for Performing Arts
$12,500Arts, Culture & Humanities
Denver Biennial of Americas
$25,000Art and Culture Platform Hosting
Center City Collaborative
$25,000Policies re drug/mental health
Hope Center
$20,000Human Services
Commons Park C&C of Denver
$15,815Park Activation-Public & Societal
Think 360 Arts
$15,000Arts, Culture & Humanities
Commons Park C&C of Denver
$6,095Community Garden-Public & Societal
