BC 2007 06 04 Wk. Session - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

June 4, 2007 (Work Session) Page 388 indicated that new guidelines would make that highly unusual and very unlikely that another grant would be funded in an area that has already received grant funding through DCA. Another problem is that the Health Alliance has failed to declare a problem in the area. A requirement of the grant is that the County must have a letter from the Local Health Department documenting failing septic systems. The Cabarrus Health Alliance has not supported the claim. There is a letter from 2001 addressing the issue is in the Fishertown Assessment Report. Another cost incurred prior to the application would be income surveys. The service area must be deemed low-income according to HUD guidelines. The area would have to be surveyed to ' determine if the area meets the 70~ low income requirement. The north end of the proposed project, Princeton Park, may not meet these guidelines. 2. USDA Rural Development. The USDA Rural Development program provides grants and low interest loans to rural areas. Some areas of Cabarrus.County are qualified for this program. The guidelines would include a voluntary hook up and a minimum 55~ local match. There could also be a loan with as much as a 90 year term for the portion of the funding that is not a grant. The loan portion of the project would be assessed against individual sewer bills. This could make sewer bills very high considering that the maximum grant portion is 958. Another critical issue with this plan is that a non-profit would have to be formed to pay the loan. The City of Kannapolis cannot be the recipient of the loan as they are not eligible under USDA regulations. It is unclear if WASACC would be eligible for the grant. USDA's grant program allows for the grant to amount to 25~ of total cost of the project (maxing out at $ 1 million). The median household income of the service area is the main evaluating factor. Staff recommends that some financial models be created for this method so that the end user would have some idea of how the assessment would affect their sewer bill. 3. CDBG Concentrated Needs: This is also federal CDBG money that is filtered through the state for the purpose of community improvement. This program allows for housing rehabilitation but , also requires that some sort of community improvement such as sewer be included in the project. There is a $700,000 maximum grant. This would allow for installation of water, sewer, and housing rehabilitation. There is an Ability to Pay factor in the application process that will make it difficult for Cabarrus County to compete as we are a tier four county and ranked 90`" in need in the state on the ability to pay scale. Another factor that may negatively impact the application is that the area has already received three concentrated needs grants in this community. The certification of problems from the Health Alliance and income survey would also be required for this project. Cabarrus County's Grant Competitiveness: 1. The cost per unit would be at least $12,958 for the whole area or $15,196 for Area A (2001 estimates). This is a very high per unit cost and will likely make the grant application less competitive than other proposals. 2. In North Carolina's five tier state system, Cabarrus County ranks as a Tier 9 county. This Tier program ranks North Carolina counties according to. poverty levels, per capita income, unemployment rates, and population growth. This ranking adversely affects the county when applying for grants because in indicates our needs to be low. This ranking is factored into virtually every application for assistance with the state. Recent County and other community agency action: , 1. County staff met with representatives from Fishertown on several occasions over the past few years. County staff offered to use CDBG and HOMD rehab funds to repair failing septic systems. No one has ever called and no list of persons has been provided. 2. The Cabarrus County CDC, now Prosperity Unlimited, has met with representatives. Representatives were asked to provide information to the CDC to mail a survey to residents. The representatives failed to provide the CDC with the necessary information for them to proceed. Analysis: