Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Detroit committee advances Neighborhood Opportunity Fund education grants after service-area clarifications
Summary
A Detroit City Council committee voted to send the education category of Neighborhood Opportunity Fund recommendations to the council’s formal session after staff answered questions about where several applicant organizations operate and who they serve.
A Detroit City Council committee voted to recommend approval of the education category of Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF) public-service grants and send the slate to the council’s formal session after staff and nonprofit representatives clarified where several applicant organizations operate and which Detroit ZIP codes they serve.
The COUNCIL committee heard that 53 groups applied to this year’s NOF round and that the administration recommended 35 organizations for public-service funding. Staff and council members said the committee had completed hearings, appeals and conflict-of-interest reviews, and that outstanding questions about some applicants’ footprints had been addressed before the committee moved the education block forward.
Chris Gulak, LPD CPC staff, briefed the committee on the timeline and numbers. Tamara Fontaine Hardy, Director of the Neighborhood Services and Economic Development Division, and Carrie Battinger of the Housing and Revitalization Department answered questions about several applicants’ mailing addresses and service locations. Fontaine Hardy said council had previously voted on appeals and that legal review from the law department and the Board of Ethics had been received.
Fontaine Hardy provided ZIP-code detail for My Community Dental Center and said HRD’s materials list ZIP codes 48125, 48205, 48206, 48207, 48213, 48214, 48216, 48224, 48226, 48228 and 48235 for the organization’s service footprint. HRD’s materials reported 132 individuals served from those ZIP codes and noted that 20 of those were in Councilmember Angela Whitfield Callaway’s district; the transcript also contains an inconsistent figure ("32") that was not resolved on the record.
Carrie Battinger said Southwest Detroit Immigrant and Refugee Center uses a post office box as its mailing address but operates clinics on the west side in Corktown at 1401 Vermont and on the east side at the Ford Resource Center. Clarissa Pico, appearing for that organization during public comment, said the center serves residents in ZIP codes 48205, 48213 and 48224 and that the PO box is used for security of legal mail because the organization shares city-funded space.
Nicole Madison, representing SEED, said SEED’s corporate headquarters is in Riverdale, Maryland, but the organization has maintained a physical Detroit address for about 10 years at 8570 Grandmont (zip 48228) and provides classroom space at Cornerstone Jefferson Douglas at 6861 East Nevada. Madison said that local staff operate the Detroit programs.
Other public commenters clarified locations and program delivery: Jeff Griffith of Youth Connection said his group operates at 300 River Place Drive in Rivertown and serves Detroit youth citywide through career academies and summer work partnerships; Angela Gabbridge described a partner-based service model and listed program locations in Corktown and Midtown; Laura Richardson of Math Corps explained the organization uses a Birmingham mailing address for secure legal mail while operating programs on the Wayne State University campus; and a caller identified as Carolyn Hughes criticized funding priorities and urged more funding for legacy senior services.
Member Benson moved to recommend approval of the organizations recommended in the education category and send that block to the council’s formal session. Director Todd asked that the motion be qualified to specify that the recommendation apply only to the organizations HRD had recommended for approval. The committee chair called for objections and, hearing none, the committee advanced the education block to the formal session.
The committee also confirmed that conflicts of interest raised earlier had been reviewed by the law department and the Board of Ethics. With the education category advanced and public comment concluded, the committee adjourned ahead of its formal session.
Ending: The education-category recommendations will appear at the council’s formal session the following day for a final vote; the formal session record will show the full vote tally and any additional amendments or qualifications.
