Agenda Item B.13
CPMS CONSENT CALENDAR
Meeting Date: November 15, 2022
TO: Mayor and Councilmembers
FROM: Jaime A. Valdez, Director of Neighborhood Services
CONTACT: Shanna Dawson, Management Analyst
SUBJECT: Initiation of 2023-2024 Community Development Block Grant (CDB G) and Goleta City Grant Programs
RECOMMENDATION:
Initiate the 2023-2024 application cycle for both the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Goleta City Grant Programs.
BACKGROUND:
Consistent with program regulations, each year, the City Council allocates 15 percent of its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program funding on a competitive basis to nonprofit organizations that provide services to low-income residents and those experiencing homelessness in Gol eta. The CDBG Program is admini stered by the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In the curre nt 2022-2023 program year, the City of Goleta allocated $35,968 (15%) of its total CDBG grant award to subrecipient nonprofit organizations.
In addition to CDBG funds, the City Council allocates $100,000 annually from the General Fund to the Goleta City Grant Program. The Goleta City Grant Pr ogram awards funding on a competitive basis to nonprofits providing public services, projects benefitting Goleta residents, special events in Golet a, educational programs servi ng Goleta youth, and cultural activities benefitting the residents of Goleta. On Jan uary 5, 2022, City Council allocated an additional $300,000 to the Goleta City Grant Program from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money, to be split evenly between the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 Program years. This brings the total amount available for the Goleta City Grant Program to $250,000 for FY 2023-2024. Staff is estimating that the CDBG amount available for sub-recipient grants will remain at approximately $36,000 for the coming 2023-24 year.
Starting in Fiscal Year (FY) 2014-15, City Council approved com bining the CDBG Program and Goleta City Grant Program application cycles. This combined grant process utilizes a single application for both programs and has been successfully implemented over the past seven years. Due to the prescribed timelines of the federal CDBG Program, 1 Meeting Date: November 15, 2022
staff is asking to initiate the combined grant application cycle for the upcoming 2023-2024 grant program year to begin on December 16, 2022.
DISCUSSION:
Staff proposes that the CDBG and Goleta City Grant Program appl ication cycle be initiated effective December 16, 2022, with an application deadline of January 27, 2023.
The City will advertise this funding opportunity through releas e of a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for both programs. The NOFA will be placed both in the Santa Barbara Independent and the Spanish-language biweekly paper, El Latino, and promoted on the City's website, social media and via press release. It will als o be posted on the City’s “Brown Act Board” in front of th e entrances to City Hall, and w ill also be made available at the City Hall reception area. In addition, the NOFA will be emailed directly to prior grant applicants and recipients, as well as newly interested organiza tions that have requested to be added to the City’s grant outreach list.
Following the application cycle, all grant applications will be reviewed by the appropriate commission or committee
1. Funding recommendations will be deliberated and made by the appropriate commission or committee in February/March of 2023, with approval of the CDBG funding by the full City Council in early April of 2023 (t entative dates listed in the table below), and approval of the Goleta City Grant Program funding in April or May, 2023.
Continuing the updates to the grant application process that started in 2018, the City will once again use the ZoomGrants on line grant application program. In order to further simplify and expedite the grant process, staff and the appropriate committee(s) will review applications through the online program rather than printed copies. Staff will also be available to assist applicants throughout the NOFA period. Table 1 provides a schedule of activity/action items for the grant application process.
Table 1: Grant Application Process Schedule
Activity/ Action Item Timeline/ Dates
City Council Initiates Grant Application Cycle for FY 2023-24 November 15, 2022 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) Release for 2023- 24 Published in the weekly Independent newspaper and
the biweekly El Latino newspaper
December 9-16, 2022
(different publication
dates)
Application Cycle Opens for 2023- 24 CDBG and Goleta
City Grant Programs
December 16, 2022
1 In past years, all grants have been reviewed and recommendations for funding developed by the standing Grant Funding Review Committee (Grant Committee), which is comprised of four members including the Mayor, Mayor Pro Tempore, and two Goleta residents who are appointed each calendar year by the Mayor. However, the Grant Committee has recommended that some City Grant applications be reviewed by the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Homelessness Issues Standing Committee (HISC) in Fiscal Year 2023-2024. This recommendation is included separately on the City Council’s November 15, 2022, agenda. If approved by Council, these three committees will conduct the application review and make recommendations to the City for this grant cycle. Otherwise, all applications will continue to be reviewed by the Grant Committee.
2 Meeting Date: November 15, 2022
Application Submission Deadline January 27, 2023
Meetings of appropriate review committees or commissions to review
applications and recommend funding awards
February of 2023
(specific dates to be
determined)
Public Hearing on Needs, Goals, and Funding Priorities for the 2023-24 CDBG Action Plan and City Council
consideration of Committee funding recommendations
March 15, 2023
30-day public review period of draft 2023-24 CDBG
Action Plan
March 25 - April 23,
2023 (tentative)
City Council approval of 2023-24 CDBG Action Plan and
Goleta City Grant Awards
May 2, 2023
2023-24 CDBG Action Plan due to HUD May 15, 2023
FISCAL IMPACTS:
In 2019, staff executed an agreement with ZoomGrants for a tota l of $7,000, which ensured continuity with the online grant program operator for two fiscal years (until June 30, 2021), paid out of the S upport Services budget (101-60-6100 -54013). On May 17, 2021, this agreement was extended for an additional two years, until June 30, 2023, and an additional $12,000 was added to the contract for a new total not-to-exceed amount of $19,000.
The City Grants contribution am ount from the General Fund has b een set at a fixed amount of $250,000 for FY 2023-24. This amount is made up of $100,000 paid for out of the General Fund (101-10-1100-54012), and $150,000 paid out of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds (423-10-1100-54012). Grant awards for the CDBG Program are paid out of CDBG (402-60-6300-54011). The City’s CDBG allocation from HUD for FY 2022- 23 was $239,793. This translates to $35,060 for CDBG public service grants (15%). Staff estimates there will be a similar CDBG allocation amount for FY 2023-24.
ALTERNATIVES:
The City Council may choose to change the dates of the NOFA app lication period, including the duration and deadlin e. However, staff recommends proceeding with the grant cycle schedule as proposed in order to ensure that fundin g recommendations for the CDBG program in particular get adopted in time for inclusion in the 2023 - 2024 Action Plan due to HUD by May 15, 2023.
Reviewed By: Legal Review By: Approved By:
___________________ ______ _____________ ______ ___________ Kristine Schmidt Megan Garibaldi Robert Nisbet
Assistant City Manager City Attorney City Manager
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