Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Permits And Cdbg Dr Projects topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Permits, CDBG-DR allocations and a planned $2M business fund: county outlines recovery spending and commercial gaps
Summary
Lane County staff reviewed recovery permit counts, federal and state funding streams for McKenzie Valley recovery, and plans for a $2 million business recovery fund administered by Community LendingWorks; commissioners urged more focus on reopening local businesses such as the Meijer's general store.
Lane County staff updated commissioners and the McKenzie Valley community on recovery permits, federal CDBG-DR allocations and a set of local projects chosen for planning, infrastructure and economic revitalization funding.
Matt McCray, Lane County staff, said the county is administering CDBG-DR dollars and summarized project pipelines: a $17.4 million allocation for affordable housing development; and roughly $7.9 million for planning, infrastructure and economic revitalization (PIR) in the Holiday Farm Fire recovery area. He said PIR-selected projects in the McKenzie Valley include a planned $2 million business recovery fund to be run by Community LendingWorks, Mackenzie School HVAC upgrades, a permanent home for the McKenzie Food Pantry, multiple large water tanks for fire suppression, Blue River Park repairs (about $897,000) and Mackenzie River track improvements including a shelter and showers.
On permits, county staff said total dwellings lost to the fire numbered 517. Of those, 261 permits have been issued, 32 permits are in review, and 225 dwellings are completed and occupiable. Staff also reported 54 residents applied under an “intent to build” process enabled by the state legislature for rebuilding up to five years post-fire.
McCray said the county has hired contractors for planning and administration; expenditures against the $7.9 million PIR allocation are in the “few hundred thousand dollars” range so far and are primarily for planning and administrative work rather than construction purchases. He said contracting with Oregon Housing and Community Services was finalized in June and that project partners are working to get programs such as the business recovery fund open to applications by November or December, subject to government funding and procurement constraints.
Commissioners and community members repeatedly raised the commercial-recovery gap in the valley. Several commissioners said reopening the local general store (referred to in public comments as Meijer’s General Store) is a high priority; Commissioner Farr pressed staff on whether a portion of the business recovery fund or PIR dollars could be used to help get a grocery/general store reopened and asked for options that would accelerate a return of commercial services. McCray and staff said Community LendingWorks and community partners are designing award sizes and that the county is not planning to award the entire $2 million to a single business; staff estimated survey-identified business need around $6.5 million across multiple businesses and said maximum individual awards would be set to spread funds among applicants.
Staff also reviewed how state grant funds (a $5 million intergovernmental agreement from Oregon Housing and Community Services) were spent: $800,000 and an additional $90,000 committed to the Rose Street neighborhood project, $1.3 million to Mackenzie Valley Long Term Recovery Group rapid rehousing projects, presite development work for the ADU program, land acquisition support for the Mackenzie Community Land Trust, individual assistance for furniture and small repairs, and other material support including storage and heat pumps for Lazydays park-model RVs.
No formal board votes were recorded while staff presented the funding and permit updates; commissioners asked staff to return with more detailed expenditure reports and options to accelerate commercial reopening where possible.
