Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Community Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council agrees in public hearing to reallocate 2024 CDBG funds to park facility accessibility audits and upgrades
Summary
In a public hearing, the city proposed reallocating 2024 Community Development Block Grant funds to audits and accessibility upgrades for city park facilities; staff said the city has more CDBG funds than it has immediate eligible projects and the county recommended this use.
Wildwood staff held a public hearing and presented a proposal on April 14 to reallocate 2024 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds toward audits and accessibility improvements at city park facilities.
Director Vonage told council the county’s Office of Community Development indicated Wildwood had accumulated more CDBG entitlement funds than it was spending, and suggested alternate eligible uses. Staff proposed using the county‑administered federal allocation to audit park facilities and then to follow the audits with prioritized restroom and pedestrian accessibility upgrades.
A public commenter urged council to consider using CDBG funds to assist low‑income seniors at risk from property tax increases; staff replied it would verify eligible uses with the county but said they believed the county’s guidance does not allow CDBG to be used for property‑tax abatements. After public comment the council closed the hearing. Staff said the use of the 2024 allocation for park accessibility will not reduce current senior programming funded by earlier allocations.
Staff said the 2024 allocation is modest ($25,500 annually from the county CDBG office) and that the proposed work would offset accessibility gaps in parks and restrooms for seniors and people with disabilities. The council closed the public hearing and directed staff to proceed with the reallocation and audits under the county’s program rules.
