Bellefontaine City Council members learned at their Tuesday evening meeting about two new grants the city will be receiving in the upcoming year — one to support hiring new staff at the Bellefontaine Fire Department and the second to make improvements to blighted properties.
Mayor Ben Stahler said the city is continually on the lookout for funding opportunities to help support the expenses associated with providing governmental services to the community.
“Without the use of grant funding from local, state and federal levels, it would be difficult to keep pace with the ever-increasing costs of providing these services.
“Fortunately, the city has been very successful in the pursuit of grant funds to improve and upgrade not only equipment and facilities, but also staffing levels and the qualitv of life in neighborhoods.
“Recently, the city has been made aware of two more grant awards that will bring significant impact in Bellefontaine.”
First, the Bellefontaine Fire Department applied through the Federal Emergency Management Association for funding through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Program, also known as the SAFER Grant.
FEMA has approved a grant for Bellefontaine that will fund the hiring of three new firefighters and pay for 100 percent of their salary and benefits for three years, amounting to more than $880,000 of federal dollars coming to Bellefontaine in support of Fire and EMS services.
The city also has the ability to apply for an extension of this program for an additional three years, providing the potential of securing nearly $2 million dollars in total funding for staffing in the six-year period.
“The fact that we are able to utilize grant funding to increase our staffing is a unique opportunity that we are excited about,” Stahler said. “Increasing the number of firefighters improves our ability to respond, especially during times of high call volumes, and increases the safety of the public and our entire team during emergent situations.
“Adding these additional staff members for multiple pars at zero cost to the city is certainly a tremendous benefit to all of us.”
Relating to the second grant, Bellefontaine will see a significant number of properties demolished and the sites restored through a project from the Logan County Land Reutilization Corporation (Logan County Land Bank).
Earlier this year, the State of Ohio announced the Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program through the Ohio Department of Development. Through the program, $500,000 was designated for each county for the purpose of demolishing commercial and residential buildings and revitalizing the sites.
The Logan County Land Bank was awarded the full $500,000 allotment, and will demolish 37 properties throughout Logan County.
The City of Bellefontaine will see 14 properties in several neighborhoods razed as part of this project.
The Land Bank currently has the demolition projects out for bid, with an opening date of Jan. 3, and an anticipated completion date sometime during the first half of 2023.
“We are thankful for funding from the state and for our partnership with the Logan County Land Bank to participate in this project. Historically, demolition projects are difficult to find funding for, and the fact that we will see 14 blighted properties removed in a short period of time is significant. It’s a relief to the surrounding property owners, and a big win for neighborhoods throughout our city.”
The mayor said the city is grateful for the staff and their continuing efforts to find alternative funding sources for these types of projects and purchases.
“Though there is often a significant amount of time and energy invested by our team in locating and applying for these grant opportunities, the announcement of awards like these this evening are the payoff. We appreciate these continued efforts from our staff and look forward to more announcements like this in the new year.”