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Solvang hears grant-writing update from California Consulting as city seeks funding for parks and wastewater projects
Summary
City-contracted grant writers California Consulting reviewed submitted and prospective grants including a Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) application for Hans Christian Andersen Park and federal opportunities for wastewater upgrades; consultants and city staff described challenges, recent federal policy shifts and next steps.
Theresa Sarkeesian, the grant writer from California Consulting, told the Solvang City Council on March 10 that the firm has submitted a mix of local and federal funding requests for the city and is pursuing multiple upcoming opportunities, including a Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) request for trail and exercise-equipment improvements at Hans Christian Andersen Park and Bureau of Reclamation grants tied to large-scale water recycling and planning.
The update, presented during a scheduled presentation and Q&A, explained why some competitive grants have been difficult for Solvang to win and what has changed. "Most grants would prioritize cities that can determine through various tools ... whether or not the city can compete," Sarkeesian said, noting that federal guidance previously favored disadvantaged communities but that recent policy shifts may allow Solvang to compete more effectively.
Why it matters: city officials and consultants said winning external funding would help Solvang advance park upgrades, wastewater-treatment upgrades and other capital projects without drawing on the general fund. City Manager Murphy and council members repeatedly tied the grant effort to larger priorities: water sustainability, infrastructure and community resilience.
California Consulting CEO Steve Simwalian said the firm is watching federal policy closely and continues to prepare applications. "We're proceeding. We're writing as many grants as we've ever written," Simwalian said. He described two recent examples in which federal solicitations were temporarily pulled and reissued with revised guidelines, and he cautioned that the firm cannot guarantee outcomes but will continue to apply.
Sarkeesian laid out specific work the consultant team has done: monthly internal scoping meetings with city staff, agency briefings (EDA on wastewater, Cal OES, USDA and Bureau of Reclamation contacts), and coordination with Senator and congressional offices on appropriations requests. She identified grants already submitted or in progress as local appropriations requests to Senator Butler and Congressman Carbajal and several federal opportunities for wastewater and transportation infrastructure.
Consultants and staff identified several challenges. The city’s small size and previous classification under equity-focused prioritization tools—examples cited included Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool criteria—limited competitiveness for some federal programs. Sarkeesian also listed past local staffing gaps in utilities and public works as hurdles that have since been filled.
On the wastewater project specifically, Sarkeesian said the Bureau of Reclamation and WaterSMART staff recommended pursuing large-scale water recycling and planning grants when the solicitations open this summer. Sarkeesian also said the city’s appropriations request to Congressman Carbajal for about $14,000,000 remains under review and that the office expected to provide an update after March 14.
Council members asked how grant matches are assessed and how the firm estimates the city’s competitiveness. Sarkeesian said match percentages are set in each funding notice (for example, a grant might fund 75% of a project, requiring the city to provide the remainder) and explained that scoring criteria in notices indicate how competitive an applicant will be. Simwalian reiterated that success is measured by return on investment and by securing funded awards over time.
City Manager Murphy said the city has limited in-house capacity and placed importance on external grant expertise. Council members and the city manager discussed the firm’s role beyond submissions—agency introductions, troubleshooting with state and federal program staff, and assisting with earmark language for appropriations requests.
The council asked for updates on specific solicitations; staff and consultants said they would return with status reports as requested and that the city’s next internal grant meeting was already scheduled.
Ending: Council members thanked the consultants and asked staff to continue monitoring the listed opportunities and to report back on outcomes and any recommended next steps.
