Maria Kacik | The Gazette
BRUNSWICK — The city wants to spend a $91,000 Community Development Block Grant it is slated to receive on three projects —sidewalks, the Heritage House and a marketing campaign.
In its application to the state, the city said it would use the money to repair and construct sections of sidewalk along state Route 303, to repair siding and the foundation at the Heritage Historical House, 4613 Laurel Road, and to put on a marketing campaign for the Brunswick Transit Alternative bus system.
Block grants are federal funds the state awards to Ohio cities every year. The money can be used to benefit low- and moderate-income individuals, aid in the prevention or elimination of slum and blight, or meet an urgent need of the community. The state is set to approve the grants this fall and the money will be available at the start of next year.
Brunswick Development Director Roger Westfall said the city is allowed to use the money to work on up to three projects. It also is allowed to use up to 15 percent of the money for administrative costs.
The city contracted with CT Consultants of Willoughby for $12,700 to put together the grant application. In addition, $990 of the CDBG money will go to the city administration to compensate for administrative costs involved.
The bulk of the CDBG money — about $51,000 — will go toward replacing sidewalks on Route 303. Sidewalks will be removed and replaced between Jefferson and McKinley avenues and handicap ramps will be installed at the five intersections along the route.
Westfall said the sidewalks are in a low- to moderate-income area, which qualifies it for the CDBG money.
“This project will benefit all the residents who live in this area and provide them with a safer route to school, work, shopping and other amenities in the area,” he wrote in a memo to City Council.
The Heritage Farm House project — costing an estimated $20,000 — would replace the footers at the southeast and southwest corners of the two-story building, which is at risk of collapsing if not repaired.
About $5,000 of the CDBG money will go to the BTA marketing program, which is being pegged as the Residents Independence, Drive and Education project (RIDE). It would involve creating and distributing brochures, road maps, posters and a Web site that would educate residents about the BTA.
At public meetings held to discuss the allocation of the CDBG money, Westfall said most residents said they never rode the BTA.
“I asked if they would use it if they knew how to gain access to it, and they all said ‘yes,’ ” he said.
Contact Maria Kacik at (330) 721-4049 or mkacik@ohio.net.
