July 11, 2023
Economic Development
DATE: July 11, 2023
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Nannette Beacham, Director of Economic Development
LaShonda White, Deputy City Manager - Community
Services
Daniel Chavarria, Director of Public Works
Jene Levine-Snipes, Development Project Manager II
Samantha Carr, Environmental Manager
Subject:
Authorization to Apply for the Strategic Growth Council’s Community Resilience Center Grant
FINANCIAL IMPACT: No financial impact anticipated at this time.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
N/A
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
City staff members are seeking City Council approval for the City of Richmond to apply for the Strategic Growth
Council’s Community Resilience Center Grant and
authorize the City Manager to execute all related
documents for the application. The applications will be for the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in
partnership with RCF Connects, Richmond Housing
Authority (RHA), other Nystrom United Revitalization
Effort (NURVE) partners and the Richmond Recreation
Complex.
AGENDA
REPORT
July 11, 2023
RECOMMENDED ACTION: ADOPT a resolution authorizing the City to apply for and accept, if awarded, Strategic Growth Council’s
Community Resilience Center Grant; APPROVE the
City’s grant application partnership with RCF Connects, Richmond Housing Authority, other Nystrom United
Revitalization Effort (NURVE) partners, and possibly
other partners; and AUTHORIZE the city manager to
execute all related documents for submission of the
application – City Manager’s Office/Economic
Development Department/Community Services
Department (Nannette Beacham/LaShonda
White/Samantha Carr 510-620-5407).
DISCUSSION:
Background
The Community Resilience Center (CRC) Round 1 grant is administered by the California Strategic Growth Council (SGC) in partnership with the California Department of Conservation. A total of $5 million will be available for CRC Planning Grants, each ranging from $100,000-$500,000. Planning Grants will fund communities in initial stages of CRC Project development that need funds for plan development, community engagement, coordination, and other future activities necessary to prepare for implementation. The goal of the neighborhood-level Community Resilience Centers is to provide shelter and resources during climate and other emergencies, such as extreme heat events and poor air quality days. SGC will prioritize community-serving locations across the state, such as schools, libraries, community centers, health clinics, and places of worship.
The City currently plans to submit a grant application for both the Recreation Complex on Macdonald Avenue and the Marin Luther King Jr. (MLK Jr.) Community Center. The Recreation Complex has been identified by City staff as needing extensive repairs and updates. Partners have not been identified for the grant application yet as it is still early in the process. In partnership with RCF Connects, Richmond Housing Authority (RHA), and other Nystrom United Revitalization Effort (NURVE) partners, an application would be submitted for the MLK Jr. Community Center. NURVE is a collaborative and comprehensive revitalization effort of the Nystrom neighborhood between the partners RCF Connects, the City of Richmond, Contra Costa County, community residents, Bay Area LISC, West Contra Costa Unified School District, National Park Service, Richmond Housing Authority (RHA), Santa Fe, Coronado, and Iron Triangle neighborhood councils, among other community entities. The NURVE partnership is uniquely positioned to be the anchor organization for this site and has been for the neighborhood over the past 15 plus years. Additionally, the MLK Jr. Community Center has been identified by the community in multiple City planning documents over the past several years as a priority project.
July 11, 2023
Richmond Resilience Roadmap
On February 18, 2020, the City Council adopted the Richmond Resilience Roadmap (Roadmap), funded by a TCC Planning grant through a partnership with The Trust for Public Land (TPL) and the Richmond Community Foundation focused on developing a community-driven climate resilience strategy for the Iron Triangle, Santa Fe, and Coronado neighborhoods (Project Area). The Roadmap (Attachment 2), which is the result of a larger community outreach and engagement process, identified nine potential projects that can advance the Strategic Growth Council’s sustainable communities objectives, such as improving air quality, improving water quality, reducing GHG emissions, improving transportation, and strengthening community resiliency to the impacts of climate change (Attachment 1). The MLK Jr. Resilience Hub was identified by the community as one of the nine priority projects.
Nystrom United Revitalization Effort (NURVE)
NURVE is a comprehensive revitalization effort birthed to strategically address some of the complex issues that face the Nystrom neighborhood such as physical and economic blight, crime, at-risk youth, unemployment, and poverty. NURVE aims to address these community needs through programs and services, capital improvement projects, and greater community participation to create safe, diverse, and thriving places, where kids walk to quality schools, people of all ages use the parks and community facilities, and a variety of housing options meet the needs of local residents. The Nystrom neighborhood centers around the Nystrom Elementary School and the Martin Luther King Jr. Park.
The neighborhood consists of a five block by four block portion of Richmond that contains the Santa Fe and Coronado neighborhood councils and borders the Iron Triangle.
The goal of NURVE is to rebuild five key community assets that community members identify as critical to achieving a vibrant community: MLK Jr. Park, Maritime Child Development Center, Nystrom Elementary School, Nystrom Village, and MLK Jr.
Community Center. MLK Jr. Park, Maritime Child Development Center and Nystrom Elementary School have been rehabilitated. Nystrom Village is currently in the process of redevelopment. MLK Jr. Community Center is the last project on the list of this 15+ year effort. Through this partnership, NURVE is committed to a comprehensive, long- term approach to community revitalization—one that honors the history of its people and places.
POLICY SYNERGIES
The grant application supports multiple city plans including but not limited to the City’s General Plan 2030, Climate Action Plan, Richmond Resilience Roadmap, and Health In All Policies.
General Plan 2030: Goal EC3 Sustainable and Efficient Energy Systems, Goal EC4 Sustainable Development, Goal EC6 Climate-Resilient Communities
July 11, 2023
Climate Action Plan Strategy: EE3 Promote Green Building, Strategy RE1 Increase Local Solar Energy Generation, Strategy WA4 Support Water Infrastructure Improvements and expand Water Reclamation and Reuse, RC1 Improve Community Preparedness for Climate Emergencies, RC3 Increase Resilience of Critical Infrastructure to Climate Change, and RC6 Protect Public Health and Promote Health Equity.
City Council Priorities 2023: 3.a Improve maintenance of the built environment, parks, and new recreation infrastructure, 3.k Rebuild the Marin Luther Kind Jr.
Community Center, 3.x Infrastructure capital needs.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Resolution
Attachment 2 – Richmond Resilience Roadmap