Agenda Highlights 4/26/22

At the Fort Smith Board of Directors Study Session meeting scheduled for 4-26-22, the Board will discuss the Community Development Advisory Committee’s recommendations for distribution of federal grant funds through the Community Development Block Grant and HOME investment partnership programs of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. The committee recommendations for the portion that must be for community development programs include $343,168 to go to the Fort Smith Housing Authority for site clearance at the Bailey Hill Reservoir, $300,000 to Next Step Homeless Services for their new facility, $33,099 to Children’s Emergency Shelter for a new roof, and $61,000 to Crawford Sebastian Community Development Council for lot acquisition.

The committee recommendations for the portion that must be for public service programs are focused dominantly on anti-poverty programs and include $9189 to Westark RSVP for medicare assistance plus another $9189 to RSVP for income tax preparation, $18,184 to Hope Campus for case management, $18,184 to Next Step Homeless Services for case management, $11,434 to Girls Inc. for membership fees, $7,384 to Heart to Heart Pregnancy Support Center for diapers and cribs, $18,184 to CSCDC for dental clinic services, $18,184 to Sebastian Retired Citizens Association for food purchase, $18,184 to Antioch for Youth and Family for food purchase, and $9889 to ARC for the River Valley for social room renovation.

The committee recommendations for the HOME program grant money include $378,000 to CSCDC for the building of 5 new affordable houses (or alternatively the purchase and renovation of multiple existing single family homes) and $289,600 to Fort Smith Housing Rehab Assistance.

The Board will also hear presentations from the Police, Fire, Parks, and Utility departments regarding their plans for the money from the .25% sales tax for Fire and Parks capital improvements and .75% sales tax for Police and consent decree related sewer work if those taxes are renewed at the election to be held 5-24-22. Representatives from each department will discuss the impact revenues currently collected from the tax have currently and some of their priorities for the future if the taxes are renewed and the impact they predict it will have on their department if the taxes are not renewed.