2017 General COMBINED Public Hearing #1
CITY OF WOOSTER, OHIO
Learn about grant opportunities for community projects, businesses, and homeowners
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG Program - PY 17) and COMMUNITY HOUSING IMPACT and PRESERVATION (CHIP) PROGRAM (CHIP Program - PY 17-18-19)
31 January 2017, 12:00 PM – Council Chambers
538 N. Market St, Wooster, Ohio 44691
The City of Wooster intends to apply to the Ohio Development Services Agency, Office of Community Development, for funding available under the federally funded Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Small Cities Program which it administers. The City of Wooster received $79,000.00 through the program’s Allocation (and $300,000 Critical Infrastructure) grant in 2016 and anticipates being eligible for an approximately $79,000 Allocation grant and competitive set-asides in 2017.
The City also intends to apply for a Community Housing Impact and Preservation (CHIP) Grant, making funding available to repair housing to assist low-to-moderate income families. In the recent past, the City partnered with Wayne County and Wayne Metropolitan Housing Authority to secure $400,000 for home repairs in Wooster.
The City will conduct the first of two public hearings on Tuesday, January 31, 2017, at 12:00 pm in the Council Chambers of Wooster City Hall at 538 N. Market St, Wooster Ohio 44691 to inform citizens and organizations about the CDBG program, with details on eligible activities and program requirements. Feedback and questions are welcome. This office will also consider mailed and emailed feedback. Please direct such correspondences to Jonathan Millea, as listed above) up until the date and time of the hearing.
A second Public Hearing will be held for each of the specific grant applications to be made in 2017 after projects and funding request amounts are decided by the City’s Administration.
The CDBG program can fund a range of activities, including economic development projects, street and drainage improvements, downtown revitalization, demolition of unsafe structures, and housing and neighborhood facilities rehabilitation. The activities must be designed to primarily benefit low-to-moderate income persons, aid in the prevention and elimination of slums and blight, or meet an urgent need of the community. The City of Wooster may also compete with other communities for the following CDBG Competitive Set-Aside funds:
Neighborhood Revitalization: Funds projects improving the quality of life in distressed neighborhoods and requires that a comprehensive revitalization strategy be carried out. (Up to $300,000).
Downtown Revitalization: Provides funding to improve Central Business Districts (Up to $300,000).
Critical Infrastructure: Provides funding for high-priority, single-purpose infrastructure improvements to alleviate failed or failing systems (Up to $300,000).
Economic Development: Provides funding for public infrastructure to enable a major commercial project involving substantial job creation (Up to $500,000 per project). This program also provides fixed-asset financing for small for-profit businesses.
Residential Public Infrastructure: Provides funding for infrastructure for communities to provide safe and reliable drinking water and proper disposal of sanitary waste. (Variable)
NOTE: Immediately following the Hearing, at 1:00pm at the same location, the City will host its bi-annual Community Development Implementation Strategy (CDIS) session, in which the City of Wooster will disseminate information about the aforementioned programs to local stakeholders (regional planning, economic development, downtown, and neighborhood organizations, and other public service providers) to encourage their assisting with identifying and prioritizing potential funding. This meeting is also open to the public.
Auxiliary aids for disabled persons are available upon request with at least five (5) days' notice prior to the meeting. Requests must be made to the Jonathan Millea, 330-263-5250, during regular working hours.