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Presenter briefs Chase County commissioners on Safe Streets grant, DOI tank grant application
Summary
A presenter told commissioners the Safe Streets for All federal grant requires competitive procurement and that OMB processing is slow; she also said a Department of Interior grant was submitted for two 1,000-gallon water tanks totaling about $52,487 plus a 5% contingency, which would increase truck water capacity roughly 16.4%.
A presenter briefed the Chase County commissioners on two separate federal funding efforts at the March 31 meeting: the Safe Streets for All grant and a Department of Interior (DOI) grant application submitted with The Nature Conservancy for two slip-on water tanks.
The presenter (who later identified herself as Karina Smontes) said the Safe Streets grant links engineering and public-health approaches and that federal approval processes are taking longer than expected because of reduced staffing at the Office of Management and Budget. She said the county expects to use competitive procurement for any contracts over $100,000 and that the grant will fund both trial installations (to test treatments such as curb extensions or reflective paint) and engineering/coordination work. "Our grant agreement has been filled in by us and by the Kansas Department of Transportation... and it needs to be reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget," the presenter said.
On a separate DOI grant application, the presenter said she helped The Nature Conservancy apply for funding to install two 1,000-gallon slip-on water tanks for dump trucks. She reported a grant request of $52,487 (plus a 5% contingency) and estimated that funding both tanks would increase the county's water-carrying capacity by about 16.4%. "The funding for the Department of Interior grant for the 2 water tankers, is $52,487... I did put in a 5% contingency," she said.
The presenter cautioned against developing detailed procurement documents too far in advance of award and recommended including a grants administrator in the RFP process to ensure competitiveness and audit readiness. She said some jurisdictions that previously received this grant reported long lead times—from application to fully executed grant agreements.
The board did not take formal action on the grants during the meeting; the presenter said staff will continue to monitor OMB and KDOT processing and will bring procurement steps forward after grant agreements are finalized.
