Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Advisory Board

Petersburg CDBG Public Interest Meeting Minutes February 21, 2024 at 6:00pm Public Comment Period Parties were allowed three (3) minutes each to present on what they believe the needs of The City are in the following objective areas: 1) Low-mid income 2) Blight 3) Urgent needs  Scott Fisher with Downtown Churches United. Previous year recipient for food bank project. They served over 20,000 people in 2023 and plan to apply again this year.  Genevive Lore - public question. What is the role that the CDBG Advisory Board plays with the grant approval process versus City Council, and Council overruling recommendations?  Ruth Frierson with The Company You Keep. What is the quantity of new applicants versus repeat applicants receiving awards? How are applicant criteria screened and looked at? Are people served the only quantifiable criteria, or are lives transformed and impacted taken into consideration?  Danette: Realtor and Petersburg church goer. Sees needs as programs for the youth and eliminating blight. How to assist with renovations and making housing affordable.  Tori - Youth Action Board (YAB) - organization helps homeless youth with resources and services.  Deborah Porter: Resident of Ward 3 - Safety and infrastructure along Johnson Rd, concerned about the children that walk to school along the road, particularly in the dark.  Mary Scott: About the Minors (nonprofit). Question about what is city-wide eligibility and how reimbursement works.  Joleshia Thomas: YAB - Plan to collaborate with local leaders to eliminate homelessness in Petersburg. Resources, youth drop in days and helping with college scholarships.  Janelle Sinclair: Representing Recreation and Special Events for City of Petersburg and HEBRON, Inc. - Needs: rehab greenspace and parks. Improve health equity and the family unit. Pocket and community parks mean more people come out and decrease crime. With HEBRON, they advocate entrepreneurship for youth. Training decreases crime and homelessness. After School programs impact more black and brown individuals.  Amy Caspear: Rebuilding Richmond works at rehabbing owner occupied homes. This is important because repairs are health and safety based. Helps keep people in homes and builds generational wealth. Keeping flippers out and ending blight.  Ms. Talley: Lending Helping Hands - Petersburg needs a youth recreation center, a space for kids to go and be kids. There are resources available, but people don’t know about them. There is also a need for a shelter for women and children to be safe, not just one for men. Also, a community resource fair to help individuals with no identification to obtain identification. o Mary Scott replied regarding Boys & Girls Club and YWCA being good programs, but those programs are not addressing the needs of kids, they don’t address the root.  Mary Kirkland: Ward 7 resident - 1) Low/mod income -need for housing co-ops and business co-ops, 2) blight - allowing building to be purchased or given to community organizations, 3) urgent needs: fund Tyrone Cherry (Urban Farm)   Amanda Hubansky: Peoples Credit Union - Housing stability and incentivize small/minority builders to boost affordable home ownership.  Barb Rudolph: Petersburg Resident - Public and environmental health education for youth. How to get program info to the people where they are.  Scott Fisher reiterated that their food pantry program may not be able to get to the root of the client’s issue because they are overwhelmed by meeting immediate needs. Jennifer asked if it would be possible to have two organizations partner together. Chair, Kofi will look into this.  Ms. Jones w/YAB says that she is open to partnerships with others. Asked of those in attendance, how can the community partner together to meet needs?  Rozelia Roy: Posed three questions - 1) What is the allocation amount as a whole of the grant? 2) Were all 2022-23 monies allocated spent? 3) Is there an opportunity to carryover funds? Jennifer explained that we are waiting on the amount to be released from the Federal government. As for the carryover of funds, Jennifer explained that that practice is not suggested and for recipients to use funds in a timely fashion.  Kofi Annan: business owner - regarding objective 1 - how specifically is low/mid income scored? Administrator, Jennifer informed that the criteria is listed on the HUD website. Award grantees are required to collect data on program participants.  The public comment period closed and the floor was then opened for comments. Justin Randolph with Project Homes reiterated that home repair helps people stay in their homes. Another attendee mentioned that there is a need for facilities to accommodate homeless individuals, and looking at other avenues outside of hotels.  The comment period closed with Board Chair, Kofi informing that March 20th will be the public meeting where applicants will have the opportunity to pitch particular projects. If someone is unable to attend, they can send their presentation to the CDBG Administration. The application period opens on 2/22/24. Meeting adjourned at 7:35pm Minutes submitted by Sonja Holt