The City of Bend Environmental and Climate Committee recommended funding six projects from a $150,000 city general‑fund climate grants pool and voted to forward the committee’s funding slate to the city manager for final approval.

The committee — meeting in person and online — approved a motion to recommend awards for six organizations after staff presented a competitive review. The grants process drew 17 eligible applications from 13 organizations requesting a total of about $830,000, organizers said; council allocated $150,000 for the program in this fiscal year’s budget.

Committee members and staff described the program as a “community partner” grant designed to support nonprofit and community organizations that deliver outreach, education, workforce development and programmatic services that the city does not directly provide. Michael Seltner, of the city attorney’s office, reminded committee members of an extra recusal requirement in the program rules: applicants’ affiliates must “recuse themselves from the discussion,” he said, citing council’s direction to avoid conflicts of interest.

Public comment at the meeting urged broader eligibility. James Teeter, speaking for Bend Bikes, asked the committee to change the grant rules so active‑transportation projects — such as safe routes to school and walking‑and‑biking street conversions — are not excluded. “The grant excludes projects that promote walking and biking,” Teeter said, urging the ECC to “recommend the T2 strategy to be eligible for the next round” and to work with staff on metrics that prioritize walking and biking over vehicular modes.

Staff said the committee’s role was to deliberate and set a recommendation to the city manager; council had delegated final award authority to the city manager. City staff also explained that when the CCAP (Community Climate Action Plan) was updated, council identified specific “community partner” actions eligible for this grant; staff and the internal review team used a scoring matrix to evaluate impact, equity, feasibility and organizational capacity.

After discussion and a brief lunch break, the committee approved a revised funding slate. The committee’s recommendation to the city manager assigns awards as follows:
- Bend Habitat for Humanity — $45,000 (partial of $50,000 requested) for climate resilience and home electrification upgrades for income‑qualified homeowners.
- Central Oregon Community College (COCC) workforce development program — $14,240 (full funding of the request presented).
- Environmental Center revolving loan / electrification access program — $25,760 (partial; staff indicated the program could be scaled).
- Bend Next Foundation / Bend Chamber waste‑reduction programming — $25,000 (partial).
- Reuse Bend — $15,000 (partial, for reuse and diversion activities).
- High Desert Food & Farm Alliance, “Grow and Give” surplus‑food redistribution program — $10,000 (partial).
- The school commute/“school pool” pilot received $15,000 in the committee’s recommendation, keeping a transportation‑focused pilot in the slate.

Committee members said they weighed cost‑effectiveness and breadth of impact, noting tradeoffs because demand far exceeded available funds. Several members urged that organizations with closely overlapping proposals coordinate in future rounds, and some members suggested the city and county may need to address multifamily recycling and related mandates through other funding or intergovernmental work rather than this competitive grant fund.

The vote to forward the committee’s funding recommendations to the city manager was seconded and approved by voice vote; no recorded roll‑call tally was provided in the transcript. Staff said awarded grants will be reimbursement‑based and that recipients must report metrics tied to their applications; staff also said an annual report will summarize outcomes. The committee and staff signaled intent to run the grant again next fiscal year if the council continues the appropriation.

The meeting closed after the vote, and the committee adjourned.