Les Ford, executive director of the Heinz-Menaker Senior Center, made a plea tonight for CDBG funds.
Funding for Harrisburg’s only senior center remained up in the air tonight, as City Council reviewed applications for federal housing dollars.
Les Ford, executive director of the Heinz-Menaker Senior Center, made his case for funds as the city decides how to apportion $1.9 million in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money, a program of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“The Heinz Center is the single most active senior center in Dauphin County, and I think Harrisburg ought to support that effort,” Ford told council during the nearly four-hour committee meeting.
Council members, though, seemed uncertain. Council President Wanda Williams, for one, criticized Ford’s approach, saying that she believes he depends too much on annual grants from the city and Dauphin County to run the center.
“There are hundreds of grants out there for aging, and you need to take advantage of that,” she said.
The Papenfuse administration already turned down funding for the center, leaving Ford to appeal directly to council.
Ford replied that the center has a long list of infrastructure and other needs and that, as its only full-time employee, he’s often too busy with other projects to hunt down and apply for many other grants. He should find out if the center will receive any CDBG money during the next legislative session on July 6.
Otherwise, most of the service agencies that applied for funds showed up tonight to make their cases. The administration already has agreed to offer most of them some money, though often at lesser amounts than requested.
Proposed recipients include:
- City Housing Rehabilitation Programs: $330,000
- Tri-County HDC: $150,000
- City Emergency Demolition: $120,000
- Habitat for Humanity Greater Harrisburg Area: $30,000
- Rebuilding Together: $15,000
- Green Space Clean Up: $53,110
- Christian Aftercare Recovery Ministries: $25,000
- A Miracle 4 Sure: $25,000
- Latino Hispanic American Community Center: $25,000
- Fair Housing Council: $25,000
- Mid Penn Legal Services: $15,000
- Neighborhood Dispute Settlement: $3,900
The administration had rejected a funding request from a relatively new group in Harrisburg called Breaking the Chains, which focuses on helping at-risk youth. After a presentation, however, council members seemed inclined to offer some funding to the group, which tonight asked for $5,000 to $10,000.
At the meeting, city fire and police officials also spoke, as each department is requesting CDBG money. The Fire Bureau wants $51,686, primarily for new lockers for both its fire stations. The Police Bureau is requesting $105,000 for a new community policing van and a police cadet program. Moreover, the city’s Department of Community and Economic Development is requesting $53,000 to cover unreimbursed costs related to the sinkhole project on S. 14th Street, including money for fencing.
Like last year, the city is using much of its CDBG money—$562,248—to pay off federal loans incurred during the Reed administration. This includes a loan that the city backed for the disastrous Capitol View Commerce Center project.
Mayor Eric Papenfuse has warned that, while the city is undertaking the annual process of distributing CDBG money, funding for the 2017-18 federal fiscal year is not assured as the Trump administration has threatened to end the program.
Author: Lawrance Binda
