October 4, 2022 |
Rawlins isn’t poor enough by federal standards to qualify for two CDBG grants the city is seeking to help improve the water infrastructure system. So, city officials want to prove them wrong and are asking for help from residents.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development operates the Community Development Block Grant program. As defined by HUD, the federal funding is intended for projects that improve the quality of life for people with low or moderate incomes, revitalize urban centers, and address the urgent health and safety needs of low-income communities. CDBG funding has been around since 1974, making it one of HUD’s longest running community improvement programs.
Rawlins has a problem. Residents make too much money, at least according to the 2020 U.S. Census. Public Information Officer Mira Miller said HUD has offered the city to provide more data.
Pictured above: Letters ready to be mailed to random survey participants. Photo courtesy City of Rawlins.
The city’s grant writer, Andrea Hammond, said the city is pursuing the option provided by HUD to see if the ratio of low-to-moderate income people living in Rawlins has changed since the 2020 survey was taken. Hammond said recent layoffs may make a difference, as well as a downturn in the energy industry since 2021.
According to HUD eligibility guidelines at least 51 percent of the residents (individuals, not households or families) must fall below the median income limits for the area. Hammond said the last census shows Rawlins is just over the threshold.
If incomes are just outside the margin, the water infrastructure project is the program’s wheelhouse. Repairing the municipal water system qualifies for the CDBG program as an “area benefit activity,” which include infrastructure or service improvement projects such as street improvement, installation of water and sewer systems, or even cosmetic improvements such as the rehabilitation of building facades.
Not everyone in Rawlins will be survey. Hammond said HUD selected residents at random and provided city officials with addresses. Hammond said those residents will be sent a letter telling them about the survey and to expect a visit.
HUD requires an 80 percent participation rate for the survey to qualify for consideration. Hammond said the city will provide multiple opportunities for the pre-selected recipients to participate in the survey.
rawlThe survey is just five questions long. They include, “how many people live in your household at this address now,” “how many people in your household are family members,” and “what is the combined total income of family members living here?”
Again, the answers will be provided anonymously.
Hammond said the goal is to collect the information by the third week of October. The grant applications are due October 31st.
