The Lincoln Civic Center has received grant money that will pay for energy upgrades that will save almost $2,000 a year in electricity costs.

LCC Manager Quinn Jordan said the LCC Commission has been diligent in seeking grants throughout the last nine years in order to improve the center without dipping into the county budget. Last week, Entergy Mississippi and Southwest Mississippi Planning and Development presented the LCC with a $7,500 grant to go towards upgrading lighting in the multipurpose building.

“We are actively pursuing a multi-phase efficiency campaign that will go across all buildings and facilities at the Lincoln Civic Center,” Jordan said. “That will allow us to reduce our current electric bill, which in turn will allow us to spend money on other infrastructural needs and requirements.”

The center also received about $1,000 in incentive rebate dollars from Entergy. Additional LCC funds will be used to complete the $14,500 project.

The multipurpose building will replace its fixtures with LED energy-efficient lights, saving $1,709 yearly, Jordan said. Those savings will pay back what the Civic Center had to take out of its budget to complete the project, $6,183, in four years. Over 10 years, the Civic Center will have saved $17,090.

Jordan said while using the county’s tax dollars efficiently and saving money is important, there is another kind of green incentive to the energy upgrades.

“We feel like everyone should do their part to reduce our energy footprint,” Jordan said. “As the population grows and energy needs increase, we need to find ways of doing what we are doing now just a little better to do our part in protecting our natural and manmade resources.”

Since 2006, Jordan said, the LCC has received more than $550,000 in grants for projects ranging from RV park construction, erosion control projects, arena extension, purchasing equipment and multipurpose building improvements.

A point of pride for the LCC, Jordan said this ongoing dedicated effort toward grant-seeking means improvements to the center, as well as its events and other projects, to benefit the citizens of this area without having to come out of the county funds.