The Graham City Council voted to withdraw from the phase 2 application process for a Salt Creek hike-and-bike trail and a State Highway 16 shared-use path after members questioned the city’s ability to cover potential matching costs.

City Manager (name not specified) told the council the city had been invited to submit a detailed application but that "there is no guarantee that the city will be awarded a grant or that TxDOT will financially sponsor either project." He said engineers would be needed to prepare the application and the city manager asked the council to appropriate up to $40,000 to retain engineering support.

Council members pushed back on the potential downstream costs if a final award required a local match. The city manager said the city’s estimated total project cost for both projects was $2,300,000 and that, without TxDOT sponsorship, the city could be responsible for roughly $460,000 in matching funds over two years. He also said the application must be fully complete and submitted no later than June 20.

"I just can't see spending $40,000 out of our general fund to go to somebody to look and tell us where we might be able to do this," Councilmember Jack said, noting competing priorities such as roads, police and fire. Other council members echoed concerns about committing reserve dollars or reducing other budgets to finance a match.

A motion directing the city manager to withdraw the city from the application process passed. The motion was recorded as originating from Councilmember Jeff; the motion passed by voice vote.

Discussion-only items recorded during the debate included options for funding the match if the city were awarded either grant and whether park-special funds could be repurposed. The city manager said the park special fund (proceeds from a prior buyout) could hold between roughly $500,000 and $1,100,000 after current projects, but he warned that the fund had been intended for park capital projects and changing that policy would be a council decision.

The council did not appropriate the requested $40,000 and the city will not proceed with the phase 2 engineering contract for the grant applications at this time.

Next steps: The city manager said staff will continue to track funding opportunities and report back; the council did not set a new date to revisit the application.