The City’s CRA manager updated the Bahama Village Development Advisory Committee on several grant opportunities and neighborhood projects the CRA plans to pursue.

Karen (CRA manager) said staff will meet with grant writers in December to pursue multiple opportunities, including a potential pump station at the Martin Luther King Jr. Pool site and a Brownfields cleanup grant; she said the Brownfields opportunity could support cleanup and reuse planning and that staff may request up to $1,000,000. Karen also referenced larger redevelopment grant programs and suggested smaller City-funded grants to catalyze façade and property improvements.

On local matching and incentive dollars, Karen said the CRA budget currently includes funds to support grants to businesses and property owners and clarified the amount available for a new local grant pool. When asked to repeat the figure, she said, “It’s currently $250,000,” and described splitting that amount across two or three applicants or using it for acquisition or façade work depending on board direction.

Karen highlighted near-term logistics and outreach: grant writers will visit in person, staff will draft the local grant program for board consideration in early 2026, and the CRA is planning a District 6 meeting on Dec. 18. She also noted recent project milestones — including a ribbon cutting at the Lofts — and invited the board to field trips and conferences to study other communities’ CRA practices.

Public commenters and board members used the report to press for more active revitalization measures: Commissioner Aaron Castillo urged the board to explore placing blighted commercial properties on a ballot for acquisition and redevelopment and suggested revenue-generating ideas (food trucks, vending machines, ATM services) to increase CRA returns. Board members requested updates from Habitat for Humanity and flagged several properties in poor repair that could require rehabilitation or face condemnation if not addressed.

Next steps: staff will meet with grant writers, refine Brownfields and pump-station proposals and return to the board with draft local grant program details for early next year.