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Date: 8/10/2021
WEST SPRINGFIELD – The West Springfield Office of Community Development will host a public hearing on Aug. 16, with the purpose to solicit comments from any person or organization wishing to be heard in regard to the development of the town’s fiscal year 2021 (FY21) Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application.
The meeting will take place at the Merrik Meeting Room, located within the Municipal Office Building, 26 Central St. The meeting will begin at 4:30 p.m.
Stephanie Welch, community development director said along with discussing the CDBG Grant, they will be reviewing the current fiscal year’s (FY) budget, along with FY18, 19, 20, and the COVID-19 grant. The grant is administered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) then awards the funds to the Office of Community Development.
Every year, Welch explained that they apply for $825,000. “The goal is to remove barriers – remove for resource equity. We want to give everyone opportunities regardless of income.”
During the meeting, Welch is hopeful to have “healthy” dialogue across attendees.
The Office of Community Development is accepting written comments until Aug. 20, however, Welch believes it's easiest to express these concerns at the meeting – in person.
For FY19 and 20, Welch said, “The Boys and Girls Club has funding – [we’re] funding a huge portion of it.”
Currently, the Boys and Girls Club is renovating their building and is in phase three. The West Springfield Office of Community Development is applying for $325,000 to assist in those renovations. The Boys and Girls Club pays a portion of this as well.
“The whole grant is to benefit low to no income [public facilities/infrastructure],” said Welch.
Similarly, the Chapin Street paving improvements will also be discussed for this grant. In addition, there are several public social service activities that are being considered as part of the grant application and include: Multicultural Resource Center of Massachusetts - Path to Employment Program; Community Action Pioneer Valley - Head Start and Early Learning Programs; West Springfield Public Library - English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Program; Boys and Girls Club - Summer Camp Scholarship Program; Wayfinders - First Time Home Buyers Education and Counseling and Downpayment Assistance Program.
All of these projects have been approved for funding and will be undertaken by the Office of Community Development.
Welch hopes that people come to the meeting to provide comments “to benefit the community.”
She concluded, “Me and the mayor's office believe this is a very important grant. It’s very important to address equity and income.”