New grant writer outlines transfer‑station plan, eyes $5M HRRI and larger build grant

Rahel, Alleghany County’s new grant writer, introduced herself at the Jan. 5 meeting and outlined multiple funding opportunities staff are pursuing to update the county transfer station and support other county projects.

She said the county plans to apply for an HRRI grant that can provide up to $5,000,000 and will request the full amount if the engineering scoping supports that scope. Rahel said she would meet with engineering to develop a line‑item scope for the transfer‑station project that will inform the application. She also described a North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund opportunity with a May submission window for park improvements and a Build grant that could provide up to $25,000,000 for large transportation‑related infrastructure. Rahel noted that the Golden Leaf Foundation requests a letter of intent (LOI) due on the 19th, and that successful LOIs can lead to a full proposal round.

County manager and staff said these funding streams could be combined to modernize the transfer station, add recycling capacity to reduce transfer costs, and plan for 30‑year infrastructure needs. Rahel cautioned that many of the grants operate on multi‑phase timetables and that notification of awards may take months.

Commissioners asked about application tiers and eligibility; Rahel said she had not yet seen town/county tier questions in the Build or HRRI application materials but will watch for those requirements. The manager confirmed staff will continue engineering scoping and budgeting work in parallel with grant applications.