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Keystone Heights staff recommend applying for $700,000 CDBG to acquire former volunteer firehouse
Summary
City staff recommended that Keystone Heights apply for a Small Cities Community Development Block Grant, seeking up to $700,000 to acquire the former volunteer firehouse as a downtown community facility. Staff and a grant adviser outlined eligibility, deadlines and next steps at the May 12 public hearing.
City staff recommended pursuing acquisition of the former volunteer firehouse as Keystone Heights’ priority project in a Small Cities Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application, officials said at a May 12 public hearing.
Melissa Fox, the grant adviser assisting the city, told the council that "the City of Keystone Heights is eligible to apply for $700,000" in this funding cycle and walked through program requirements and deadlines. Staff said they had been in discussions with the property owner and believed the building sits inside the city’s Community Redevelopment Area (CRA), which could allow qualification under federal "slum and blight" criteria rather than solely on low-to-moderate income (LMI) thresholds.
Staff cautioned that an acquisition award would cover only acquisition-related costs — appraisal, closing costs, grant administration and the environmental assessment required by the CDBG program — and that renovation funding would need to be pursued in a later funding cycle. Fox estimated that, if awarded, it could take up to a year after the award for the city to complete acquisition steps, including appraisal and environmental review.
The hearing did not record a formal vote; staff said they will present the completed application and required resolutions at a second public hearing next week, at which the council would be asked to authorize submission and commit any local leverage funds. Council members discussed options for funding the local match and potentially using CRA or general funds if the application is advanced.
