Council reassigns LB840 funds so Little Blossoms Kids Club can build a school-age play area

The Blair City Council on Nov. 25 approved Resolution 2025-129 to amend an earlier LB840 award to Little Blossoms Kids Club at 2232 Washington Street, allowing $30,000 of the funds originally reserved for a bus to be used for outdoor play-area upgrades.

City Administrator Phil Green told the council the $110,000 award previously had been split into two forgivable loans: $60,000 intended for transportation (a bus) amortized over seven years, and $50,000 tied to facility repairs and job-creation milestones that would become forgivable if conditions were met. Green said the applicant recently acquired a bus at auction below expected cost, freeing $30,000 to shift into the remodeling tranche.

Applicant C. Cassandra Rice described plans to convert unused west-side property at the daycare into a school-age play area, proposing a basketball court, a gaga ball pit and expanded grassy space for sports. Rice said the work—including concrete, a hoop, fence adjustments, utilities and labor—was estimated at $30,527.

The finance committee reported it reviewed the request, found the bus purchase and proposed reallocation reasonable and under budget, and recommended approval. Council Member Clark moved adoption; the motion passed with all council members present voting in favor.

The amendment does not increase the total LB840 award amount; it reallocates previously authorized funds from the vehicle tranche to facility improvements tied to the applicant’s program goals. The resolution text specifies a 0% interest seven-year term on the bus portion and the remainder structured to become forgivable as employment milestones are met.

The council did not specify additional reporting requirements for the project in the meeting record. Next procedural steps are implementation by the Little Blossoms Kids Club and any follow-up monitoring required under LB840 rules.