City of Humboldt acts on Community Catalyst grant
Development was the main topic at Monday night's Humboldt City Council meeting. One of the biggest current developments in the city is the new Humboldt Recreation Center on Wildcat Road. Workers from Sande Construction install some of the final pieces of structural steel on the main part of the new Humboldt Recreation Center. The 70,000 square foot facility is being built by the Nielsen family and will be donated to the city of Humboldt upon completion. Donations are being accepted to help purchase needed equipment for the Recreation Center. Humboldt Independent photo.
Development was on the minds of the Humboldt City Council during its final meeting of 2017.
The Council, by a 4-0 vote, approved giving Humboldt City Administrator Travis Goedken and Humboldt County Development Director Alissa O’Connor the go-ahead to proceed with a 2018 Community Catalyst Building Remediation Program.
Goedken explained the remediation program as an underused grant program offered by the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
The program is intended for a single building identified by the city, that if remediated, would stimulate additional economic growth or reinvestment in the community.
Both Goedken and O’Connor thought the program sounded perfect for an effort to rehab the old city post office building at 30 Taft St. N.
Goedken said the program has a total of $1 million to award, with a maximum to any one project of $100,000. Goedken reported that a match is required, either in financial commitment or in in-kind services or labor. There is no minimum amount of the match, but the larger the match, the better chance the municipality would have of receiving the grant.
The city administrator proposed asking for $100,000 in grant funds and offering a $50,000 match from the city. Goedken explained that the match would come from an interfund loan from the city, with that money repaid from tax increment financing revenues generated from the improvement to the Central Business District.
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