Richland County approves CDBG application to fund Dayspring generator, reduced-fare transit

The Richland County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday authorized filing a Community Development Block Grant application and approved an anti-displacement plan, recommending $210,000 for a generator replacement at Dayspring assisted living and $75,000 to subsidize reduced-fare bus passes for seniors and people with disabilities.

The action starts the formal application for the county’s $390,000 CDBG allocation for projects that benefit low- and moderate-income residents. Commissioners Cliff Meares and Daryl Banks voted in favor; Commissioner Tony Vero was absent.

Jodika Shetty, executive director of the Richland County Regional Planning Commission, told the commissioners this was the second public hearing on the CDBG program and that the county solicited projects under its citizen participation plan. She said two applications were received and recommended funding both projects. “This year too, Richland County got an allocation of 390,000 to … community qualifying community development grant projects,” Shetty said.

One recommended award is for Dayspring assisted living’s generator replacement. Michelle Swank, executive director of Dayspring, described the need: “Dayspring has 2 generators that supply our facility in the case of emergency so that we don't go without heat for power or water. And our older generator is 25 years old, and it is getting past point of its normal lifespan.” Swank said the new, more powerful generator would also provide backup power for the facility’s wastewater plant, which currently has no generator and requires staff to respond manually during outages.

Shetty recommended funding $210,000 of Dayspring’s $230,000 request against a total project cost Shetty described as $236,000. Commissioners did not request changes to that recommendation during the hearing.

The second recommended award would fund reduced fares and Americans with Disabilities Act–accessible transit for seniors and people with disabilities through the Richland County Transit Board. Shetty said the grant would cover the local match for a federal transit award: the CDBG portion would cover the local share while the remaining 80% of operating support is supplied by the federal grant. Shetty said the transit program anticipates serving up to roughly 200 low- and moderate-income individuals, providing about 900 discounted transit passes and approximately 2,088 trips; the City of Mansfield typically helps cover 88 trips.

Shetty asked the board to authorize filing the CDBG application with the recommended funding levels. A motion to authorize filing the application was made and seconded; after roll call, Meares and Banks voted “yes,” and the motion passed.

Shetty also outlined required grant activities: fair housing outreach and complaint handling, administration of the three-year grant, and a fair housing coordinator contract with the City of Mansfield that currently runs through December 2025 and will be renewed as a new three-year agreement. Shetty noted the planning commission committed an additional $50,000 from its revolving loan fund, bringing the total recommended uses of the CDBG allocation to $341,200. Shetty said no competitive grant applications were submitted this year.

The board also reviewed and reapproved the county’s anti-displacement plan, a standard document required by the CDBG program that describes how residents will be assisted if a project involves demolition. Shetty said the plan commits the county to ensuring displaced residents are offered relocation assistance to housing that is “the same or better.” A motion to approve the anti-displacement plan was made and seconded and passed on the same roll call votes.

Sherry Smolsky, Dayspring operations manager, thanked the commissioners for the county’s past support and said a new generator would be “such a help” to operations during outages.

No competitive CDBG projects were approved this year and the board took no other actions related to the grant at the meeting. The board adjourned at 9:42 a.m.