Pittsfield Anticipates Increased Community Block Grants
 The city will get more than expected in Community Development Block Grant funds this year, but diminishing amounts mean reductions in staffing in the Community Development office. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — After three consecutive years of reductions in local Community Development Block Grant funding, what was at first expected to be a further cut because of the federal sequestration may now amount to a small increase in the coming fiscal year.
"Even with the anticipated sequestration cut that they made, we're receiving a slight increase of 4 percent CDBG funds for the 2014 fiscal year," acting Community Development Director Bonnie Galant informed the City Council's Committee on Community and Economic Development on Monday.
While the city had been told early this year to expect as much as a 10 percent cut in its CDBG allotment, which comes from the federal Department of Housing and Development (HUD), it now expects around $1.16 million, which combined with program income brings the total budget to $1,673,883. The change comes following a determination that HUD will be able to utilize $300 million in disaster funding to augment its community building allocations this year.
The four-member subcommittee looked favorably on the Community Development Department's draft action plan for the CDBG funds, which will be spent for five main priorities: development of the planned Westside Riverway, sidewalk reconstruction and accessibility improvement, demolition of condemned buildings, human services funding, and to continue the neighborhood clean ups and community garden programs.
These priorities, said Galant, were planned in response to public input from two community meetings held earlier this year to poll residents on what projects they felt the funds should be used for.
Councilors Kevin Morandi and John Krol, who represent the Ward 2 and Ward 6 neighborhoods where the public input meetings were held, said the projects in the draft plan did a good job of addressing the concerns residents had put forth.
"These priorities are really reflecting what the westside is looking for," said Krol, "I think this shows the wide range of projects that CDGB funding can be used for."
Councilor Jonathan Lothrop emphasized the neighborhood impact of the portion of the funds used to combat blight, which in 2014's budget accounts for 11 percent to be spent on demolishing derelict structures. Councilor Christine Yon spoke favorably of the importance of continued sidewalk construction and accessibility in supporting the city's Master Plan priorities.
"It's in there numerous times that part of our goal is to have less automobiles, and more bikeable, walkable neighborhoods," said Yon of the city's community development strategy document, approved in 2009. "So it is really important that we invest money in our sidewalks, and it's good to see that money comes out of the CDBG funds for sidewalks. There's not always [city] money available once we have to go through fixing roads, for the sidewalks."
Despite the slight rise, an overall trend of diminishing block grant payments of up to 1/3 of what the city previously received has lead the department to look at narrowing its staff involved, through not replacing upcoming retirees.
"It's not an ideal situation," said Galant. "But over the past couple years we've found that we just can't justify that number of staff people on CDGB."
According to the department's FY14 CDBG budget, administration of the funding acounts for $174,821, or ten percent of the total budget.
Tags: CDBG, HUD,
