GILROY
– It’s a question of timing versus money.
City Council unanimously authorized a grant application Monday
that could expand the scope of an important land-use plan that will
help guide improvements and revitalization efforts in the city’s
downtown
– and potentially open the door for millions more to help pay
for those improvements.
GILROY – It’s a question of timing versus money.
City Council unanimously authorized a grant application Monday that could expand the scope of an important land-use plan that will help guide improvements and revitalization efforts in the city’s downtown – and potentially open the door for millions more to help pay for those improvements.
But grant requirements mean that the city will have to tinker with its work schedule for that plan – which a special task force has already begun work on – and that its formal birth will likely be delayed for at least six months.
Councilman Al Pinheiro isn’t excited about any delay, but with the city facing hits to its operating budget – and uncertainities over how severe the hits will be – he has to face some tough realities.
“I can’t be making decisions spending money if I don’t know exactly where we’ll be at tomorrow,” Pinheiro said in an interview Tuesday. “If there’s another source of money that could help the downtown plan be this final-final instrument, we might have to eat up another six months.”
City staff say they have the opportunity to apply for federal Economic Development Administration grant funding to help pay for work on the Downtown Specific Plan, a crucial document that will include rules and regulations governing everything from parking to financial incentives and help set the tone for the future of downtown.
In the short-term, the city could apply for up to $280,000. That amount could include both previously outlined costs to hire a consultant and conduct environmental and economic analyses, as well as more money for additional parking and marketing studies.
Perhaps more importantly, officials say winning one grant from EDA could open the door for an ongoing relationship that could provide more funding for future capital projects.
“We have potentially opened some really nice doors …” if the city gets the initial grant, said City Administrator Jay Baksa. “That’s the real advantage of giving the EDA grant a shot – it’s the potential of having a shot at a million (dollars).”
But to apply for the grant, the city will have to scrap its current timeline and process for completing the specific plan.
The city is not formally allowed to construct a specific plan until it hears back on the grant in October, and will probably have to reserve half of the funding it has set aside to pay for a consultant as matching funds. The provisions could mean delay of six months.
And in the meantime, the city has to decide whether to delay the task force’s work altogether or allow it to continue with broad policy decisions over the next six months that could be translated into specifics after the grant decision is made in October.
Baksa and city Community Development Director Wendie Rooney said there’s plenty for the task force to sift through in the meantime, ranging from important questions about economic incentives to unreinforced masonry buildings.
“I think we have enough to keep them going … ” Baksa said. “It’s not busy work.”
But Councilmembers left that decision up to the task force Monday at Pinheiro’s request, noting the extra time commitment it would entail.
When told of the grant actions by a reporter Tuesday, task force member Jim Habing said it seems to make sense to go after grant money.
“If we can get some money from the federal goverment, I’m all for it,” he said.
And while he wants to check with the task force on what comes next, he noted that the group – which has met twice – currently has “a lot of energy, and everyone’s excited” about working on the plan.
While they licked their chops at the prospect of more money, some Councilmembers did express concerns and uneasiness about dragging out downtown efforts further.
“My first instinct is to say ‘here we go again;’ we’re dragging this out another six months,” said Pinheiro, who is also a member of the task force. But he also noted that $280,000 is “a lot of money.”
Councilman Roland Velasco, another task force member, said he had “very mixed feelings” about the delay.
“There was a very firm commitment to get going on the downtown specific plan … and it’s different from other (past) plans because we’re going to try to implement it,” he said.
He also cited the risk of going through the changes and delay not getting the initial grant altogether.
“Are we just going to suck it up from there?” he asked.
But officials said they’re pretty confident, noting an EDA representative who toured downtown was “impressed” with the city’s plans there.
“We feel very strongly we’ll be successful in this,” Rooney said.
The task force meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, Gilroy City Hall, 7351 Rosanna St. For information call 846-0440.
