Commission approves staff request to let Revive Ministries spend roughly $34,000 left from prior grant

The commission voted to let staff negotiate a new contract so Revive Ministries can spend about $34,000 remaining from a previously approved 2023 grant, Deputy Director Jesse Halde told the panel.

Jesse Halde, the commission's deputy director, said the grantee’s original contract expired Aug. 31 and the organization did not expend all allocated funds because it was unaware of the modification process and experienced project delays. “They had, approximately $34,000 that they had allocated, but just didn't get spent,” Halde said, and staff recommended issuing a new contract to cover expenses from September and about $20,000 to finish renovation equipment purchases consistent with the originally approved uses.

A commissioner moved to issue the new contract and another seconded the motion. Commissioners discussed whether approving a post-expiration contract might set a precedent. One commissioner asked, “If we do this kind of thing, is this gonna be our policy going forward?” expressing concern about routine after-the-fact extensions.

Karen, a committee member who identified herself only by first name, urged the commission to consider extenuating circumstances and not adopt a reflexive denial policy: “Emergencies happen. People get sick. Projects get put on hold for various reasons,” she said, arguing for case-by-case review.

Halde said staff have introduced clearer procedures to avoid recurrence: a modification form, grantee meetings for 2024 awardees, advance warnings about impending contract expirations and a protocol for approving modest line-item changes without returning to the commission. He told commissioners about prior practice, saying roughly half of the 2023 grants had requested modifications and that the new process should reduce similar surprises.

After discussion, a motion to allow staff to move forward with creating the contract was approved by voice vote. The transcript records multiple “Aye” responses and the chair declared the motion passed; the record does not contain a full roll-call tally.

The action allows Revive Ministries to proceed with the expenditures described to finish previously approved work; staff said the new contract would reflect the original approved uses and that larger or materially different changes would still be handled case by case.

The commission did not provide a detailed roll-call vote in the transcript. The matter will proceed under staff supervision and is expected to follow the new modification rules the commission described.