Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Eagle Water Grant topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee hears Eagle Water youth workforce grant; forwards recommendation to full commission
Summary
City staff presented an Eagle Water career and workforce grant that would expand youth placements and water-sector exposure; staff said materials would be purchased for reuse and the committee agreed by consensus to forward the grant to the full commission for a funding decision.
The Public Safety and Public Works Committee reviewed an Eagle Water career and workforce grant aimed at expanding youth employment and training tied to water-system and habitat-restoration work.
City manager Mister Little described program elements including tours of the drinking-water plant, invasive-species removal with Berrien County Conservation District partners, PPE and tool purchases (rubber boots, loppers, nets, wheelbarrows) and hands-on exposure to water and wastewater operations. "They funded us for the 80,000, which was splitting between 2 years," Little said; elsewhere in the agenda packet the amount appears as $84,000, and commissioners requested written clarification and full documentation before a final vote.
Staff said equipment purchased for the program would be retained by the city for future use, and that some placements would allow youth to gain experience with local employers such as the water plant and airport. Commissioners pressed for details on how the youth would be recruited, supervised and matched to career interests; staff said recruitment is done primarily through schools and coordinated by Corey Sterling and that they would supply the names of three supervisors and additional program details to the committee ahead of the full commission meeting.
After discussion the committee indicated consensus to forward the grant and related public-works items to the full commission so elected members can make a comprehensive funding decision.
The committee did not take a formal roll-call vote on the grant at this meeting; staff committed to deliver a written packet with clarified grant amount, supervisor names and a procurement plan for the PPE and tools before the full body reviews the item.
