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City manager reports pause on forestry planting grant; facade grant program moves forward with LDA manager
Summary
City manager told the council federal review may affect reimbursement of an ODNR forestry grant, pausing new work on a streetscape tree-planting project; simultaneously the Appalachian community facade grant program is moving ahead with LDA as construction manager and Eastgate administering disbursement details.
The City Manager told the Geneva City Council the city received notice from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry that funds awarded for an updated streetscape/tree-planting project “might be impacted by the review of programs as part of the federal executive orders,” and that staff must pause new expenditures until the status of the grant is clarified.
“...I cannot guarantee reimbursement of those expenditures if the status of the grant changes,” the City Manager said, and added the city asked the arborist to pause new activity while honoring submitted hours to date.
The manager said the paused funds are linked to a federal program (he cited the Inflation Reduction Act as the source of the funds) and that a planned tree-selection meeting had to be postponed because of the pause. Staff will await guidance before proceeding with further work or committing additional expenditures.
Separately, the manager reported progress on an Appalachian community façade grant program the city applied for. He said LDA (identified in the meeting as the construction manager) has been engaged to work with property owners who applied for façade work; Eastgate and a county “503 corporation” were described as partners available to assist applicants with financing and down-payment issues.
The manager described the program’s funding structure in the meeting: the city will require participants to provide an upfront contribution (described by staff as 20% or $6,000 in the example discussed). The manager said the grants cover up to $30,000 per project and that the city would likely pay up to $24,000 per approved project, subject to program rules and available funds. “When we submitted the application ... we made sure that everybody understood it was an 80/20 up to up to 30% ... up to $30,000,” the manager said. Staff said Eastgate will likely forward grant funds to the city, which will maintain the account and work with contractors; contractors will not be paid until work is evaluated and confirmed complete.
The manager also noted one applicant withdrew and staff are following up to determine whether other applicants remain eligible. He cautioned any redistribution of funds must be consistent with the original grant’s purpose and administrator rules.
On a separate administrative item, the manager asked to add a resolution at the next council meeting to authorize a three-year dispatch service agreement renewal with “Gila on the Lake” (as transcribed). The manager said the agreement collected $36,500 in 2024 and that he expected modest increases over the next three years. He asked to bring a resolution authorizing the agreement to the next agenda; no vote was taken at this meeting.
Ending: The council recorded the manager’s report and agreed to place the dispatch-service resolution on the next agenda for formal action; the forestry grant and streetscape planting remain paused pending federal guidance.
