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March 22, 2012 For more information, contact: MCEC approves home repair grant agreement The Meramec Community Enhancement Corporation (MCEC) board approved a Home Repair Opportunity Program (HeRO) grant agreement for home improvements within the Meramec Region and the City of Waynesville during a special teleconference meeting March 19. Kelly Sink-Blair, Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) project development manager, presented the Missouri Housing Development Commission’s (MHDC) grant agreement for the HeRO regional and Waynesville Downtown Revitalization and Economic Assistance for Missouri (DREAM) grant. The grant allocation totals $300,000, with the regional home repairs allotted some $96,500 and the City of Waynesville being allocated $203,500 of the grant. Sink-Blair informed the board that the grant agreement needed to be approved and signed and returned to MHDC for the grant work to begin. In other business, during the March 19 meeting, the board approved a resolution authorizing the MRPC executive director or assistant director to sign grant documents that have been approved by the MCEC board in lieu of the presiding chair of MCEC. Planning Manager Connie Willman explained this resolution would only be necessary in cases when the MCEC chairman was not available and the documents were time sensitive. The board also approved an application to the National Environmental Education Foundation – 2012 Every Day Grant for $5,000. The requested grant funds would be used for educational signs after the Goodwin dump site clean-up project in Laclede County is complete. The Missouri Cave and Karst Conservancy, in partnership with other agencies, asked MCEC and MRPC to partner on this project by securing grants to assist in the clean up effort. The board previously met March 13 at MRPC but lacked a quorum. At that time, Sink-Blair also updated board members on project administration and informed them of the new grant. Sink-Blair explained although there have been cuts with MHDC funding, the DREAM grant for the City of Waynesville was fully funded and 10 houses will be repaired. There will be approximately five other houses throughout the region that will be repaired with the 2012 grant funds. Four houses in the region have already been identified, and staff is working on processing applications. There are two houses left for the 2011 grant funds, and home repair work should be completed by the end of March, Sink-Blair noted. The Community Development Block Grant Disaster Funding grant for Regional Rehab, which totaled $306,563, will be used to repair 15 rental homes, Sink-Blair said. All houses must pass an environmental review and 10 homes have been inspected thus far. The next meeting of MCEC is scheduled for 1 p.m. June 12, 2012 at MRPC, located at 4 Industrial Drive in St. James. Meetings are open to the public. MCEC is a 501(c)3 non-profit that works closely with Meramec Regional Planning Commission to address issues in the region and secure funding that can only be accomplished through a non-profit. The board, which meets quarterly, contracts with MRPC to deliver its programs. For more information on MCEC, contact Connie Willman at 573-265-2993 or by email at cwillman@meramecregion.org. |