The City Council this week authorized the city manager to apply for money from the Orange County Community Resources OC Housing and Community Public Facilities and Improvements Grant program.
If the $350,000 is awarded, the money will go to improve the North Seal Beach Community Center, according to the staff report prepared by Management Analyst Megan Coats.
“This grant award is for the 2024-25 fiscal year, though staff should be notified by April 2024 if an award is anticipated,” Coats wrote.
“To facilitate this, staff will leverage $70,000 from the City General Fund or other identified sources to staff project management and inspections,” Coats wrote.
The revenue and costs associated with the grant will be included in the 2024-2025 budget, according to the Coats report.
This was originally a Consent Calendar item, but District Five Councilman Nathan Steele pulled the item for separate consideration before the council unanimously approved it. Steele cited the importance of the North Seal Beach Community Center. He said he couldn’t spend his discretionary fund in Leisure World because Leisure World is on private property, so he was going to spend this year’s $20,000 to this program.
Background
“This is a federally funded program that provides annual grants to states, cities, and counties to develop viable communities by providing decent housing, a suitable living environment, and opportunities to expand economic opportunities,” Coats wrote.
According to Coats, the 3,688-square-foot North Seal Beach Community Center needs work.
“The grant funds will be used to upgrade interior and exterior lighting to energy-efficient fixtures; reconfigure the kitchen to consolidate appliances for energy efficiency and create a better working space for senior meal programs; enhance operable exterior doors to encourage outdoor usage and extend usable space and capacity; upgrade doors from single pane to dual pane glass for increased efficiency and resiliency; rehabilitate restrooms to include low-flow, water efficient fixtures; and implement Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant upgrades to increase and improve equitable access for all,” Coats wrote.
“ADA improvements include removing the wall around the drinking fountain for wheelchair accessibility, replacing sliding doors with swinging doors to remove trip hazards, and eliminating trip hazards in the entry using enhanced flooring materials,” Coats wrote.
