Community Infrastructure Fund

2026 Grant Recipients Announced

The San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors are proud to announce the third cohort of recipients under our Community Infrastructure Fund. This year, the Board of Directors awarded more than $1 million to seven projects across the region, our largest annual commitment to date. Since the program launched in 2024, the fund has provided more than $2.2 million to local projects.

Each year, the Exchange Contractors dedicate a portion of the proceeds from our Conservation Water Transfer Program to reinvest in Central Valley communities. This year’s awards will fund safer and more accessible recreation trails, modernized wastewater systems, new and upgraded water infrastructure, and long-term water supply planning.

2026 Grant Recipients

In the program’s third year, seven projects were awarded more than $1 million in total grants:

  • Cal Poly College of Agriculture — $100,000 to purchase a water treatment system for the Sustainable Water Solutions Lab, whose work serves drought-challenged agricultural districts across the Central Valley.
  • Firebaugh-Las Deltas Unified School District — $200,000 to replace a district well that has been in service for more than 45 years, keeping a reliable supply of non-potable water available for school grounds.
  • City of Gustine — $175,000 for new aeration equipment and electrical modernization at the city’s wastewater treatment facility, bringing six new aerators online.
  • City of Gustine — $36,000 to replace the aging electrical control panel that powers the automatic bar screen at the wastewater treatment facility’s headworks.
  • City of Firebaugh — $170,000 for trail system improvements along the San Joaquin River and CCID’s Poso Canal, including decorative entry gates, expanded solar lighting, a new ADA-accessible path at Vasquez Drive, and restoration of historic murals.
  • City of Los Banos — $150,000 for an alternative water supply assessment to reduce the city’s reliance on groundwater and strengthen long-term supply.
  • Las Deltas Mutual Water Company — $209,000 to install automated flow meters throughout its water system, tracking usage and reducing water loss under new Senate Bill 552 requirements.

About the Program

The Community Infrastructure Fund supports projects from community-based organizations, non-profits, and local government entities in four areas:

  • Water resource development and conservation
  • Renewable energy and electric power infrastructure
  • Recreational facility development in conjunction with water works and facilities
  • Sewage treatment and public health-related infrastructure

Priority goes to projects within the service areas of our four Member Entities: Central California Irrigation District, San Luis Canal Company, Firebaugh Canal Water District, and Columbia Canal Company. Applications are reviewed by the Community Infrastructure Committee, with final funding decisions made by the Board of Directors.

Past Grant Recipients

2025 Grant Recipients

In the program’s second year, six projects were awarded more than $600,000 in total grants:

  1. City of Firebaugh — $190,000 for pedestrian and bike trail improvements along the San Joaquin River, including a concrete walkway, rest area with shade structures, picnic table, drinking fountain, and landscaping.
  2. City of Los Banos — $100,000 to resurface the H.G. Fawcett Canalside Trail between Pioneer Road and I Street, improving walkability and ADA accessibility.
  3. City of Gustine — $67,500 to replace five severely degraded brick-lined sewer manholes with modern, corrosion-resistant precast concrete units.
  4. Milliken Museum Society — $55,725 for the Historical Newspaper Digitization Project, digitizing two community newspapers and preserving more than one hundred years of regional history.
  5. Milliken Museum Society — $10,000 for the restoration and preservation of a large vintage 1900 Miller and Lux San Joaquin Valley ownership map.
  6. Firebaugh-Las Deltas Unified School District — $204,000 to help create 120 new parking stalls at Firebaugh High School, with improved driveways and fencing.

2024 Grant Recipients

In the program’s inaugural year, five organizations received over $500,000 in grants:

  1. City of Firebaugh — $180,000 for rehabilitation of the pedestrian and bike trail along the San Joaquin River.
  2. City of Newman — $150,000 for a Community Conservation Area with an educational plaza and pollinator garden.
  3. City of Los Banos — $125,000 for solar lighting along the H.G. Fawcett Canalside Trail.
  4. City of Gustine — $30,000 for the Schmidt Park Pond aeration project.
  5. City of Gustine — $95,000 for a recharge basin groundwater development project.
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