Evansville Citizens Advisory Committee recommends ESG and CDBG public‑service allocations, urges $10,000 minimum

The Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) on Wednesday recommended a set of allocations for federal Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) public‑service funds and agreed to forward the spreadsheet of recommendations to Mayor Terry for consideration and then to City Council.

Committee members spent the Feb. 5 meeting confirming a recommended dollar amount for each applicant, largely following the group mode (most‑frequent recommendation) or the calculated average where the mode was not decisive. The CAC’s CDBG public‑service recommendations are intended to stay under an anticipated public‑service cap of about $308,000; at one point the staff reported $9,180 remained available to allocate after the committee’s selections.

Why it matters: These recommendations shape which local nonprofit services — food pantries, homeless shelters, youth and senior programs and outreach teams — would receive federal grant funding through HUD programs administered by the city if the mayor and council accept the CAC’s proposals.

The committee’s recommendations

Votes at a glance: the CAC recommended the following allocations (amounts are the CAC’s recommended funding to be forwarded to the mayor):

- Albion Fellows Bacon Center (domestic violence shelter): $20,000 - Aurora coordinated entry assessment team: $16,000 - Evansville Rescue Mission (day shelter): $10,000 - Echo House / House of Bread and Peace (shelter services): $16,000 - Ozanam Family Shelter (family shelter operations): $15,963 - United Caring Services (day shelter): $21,000 - Ruth’s House (women’s shelter,…