The federal Community Development Block Grant program has traditionally drawn many worthy requests for money, but Springfield Township officials want to be sure their residents will reap the benefit.
The board on Oct. 14 tabled a decision concerning the ‘public services? portion of the annual grant program, asking the hopeful agencies to provide statistics on how many township residents they serve.
‘It becomes more and more difficult to determine how to spend these funds in Springfield,? Supervisor Collin Walls said at a public hearing immediately prior to the regular township board meeting.
CDBG money comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and is intended primarily for ‘low-to-moderate-income? households. Other allowable uses are programs to help senior citizens and the disabled.
For the 2005 program year, Springfield Township is expected to receive $39,017 in CDBG funds.
Of that amount, $19,508.50 will be allowed in the ‘public service? category, but seven agencies requested a total of $34,904.
‘It’s not possible to fund them all,? Walls said.
The applicants included the Springfield Township Library, the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency, Kaleidoscope Foundation, Neighbor for Neighbor, Lighthouse of Clarkston, Haven and Holly Area Youth Assistance.
All claim to have Springfield Township residents as part of their clientele, but different reporting methods had trustees wondering about the accuracy of the numbers.
One agency, for example, provided numbers based on the Davisburg zip code, but Springfield Township also includes parts of the Clarkston and Holly zip codes. Another agency admitted some of their service numbers could include repeat services to some families.
Since the deadline for CDBG applications is not until December, trustees asked for more specific reports and offered township street address maps to help the agencies in that effort.
‘Everybody’s goal here is to put these dollars to the best use for Springfield Township residents,? Trustee Dean Baker said. ‘If we could gather more statistics to help us make that decision, I think we should.?
Clerk Nancy Strole also asked agency representatives to report contributions from neighboring government units in which those groups serve.
Noting the difficulty in finding specific zones of the township which could qualify for CDBG projects, Walls had preliminary recommendations for the rest of the 2005 grant.
In the category of ‘planning and management,? Walls suggested the allowable $7,803 be given to the township library board for a needs assessment to determine future staffing needs.
Of the remaining $11,705.50, possible projects include removal of architectural barriers to make the Mill Pond Beach shower tower comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The township also engages in ’emergency rehabilitation? and ‘energy efficiency improvements? for homes which qualify under the ‘low-to-moderate? income rules.