Title
Authorize Recommended Changes to the 2021 Neighborhood Block Watch Grant Program Process (Ordinance S-46749)
Description
This report requests the City Council to approve the requested change to the 2021 Neighborhood Block Watch (NBW) grant application guide and program process to increase the maximum grant award from $10,000 to $12,000 beginning with the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 grant application process.
Report
Summary
The NBW Oversight Committee was established to solicit, evaluate, and recommend, to the Mayor and City Council, appropriate proposals to expend funds for the expansion of the Block Watch programs within the limits of the Neighborhood Protection Ordinance. This ordinance, known as Proposition 301, was adopted at a special election held on Oct. 5, 1993. The City Council adopted the format and guidelines for this process on April 26, 1994. The NBW program is administered by the Police Department.
Funding for this grant program comes from an increase in sales tax revenues that was adopted at the special election held on Oct. 5, 1993. As of Dec. 31, 2019, the fund currently had an available balance of $5.9 million. The sales tax revenue is estimated to be $1.8 million per year, the return of unused grant funds and interest is estimated to be $384,000 per year, resulting in an estimated total annual revenue of $2.2 million. The estimated expenditures include $1.5 million to fund new grants and $400,000 to fund a pilot gated alley program that was approved by City Council at the March 18, 2020 meeting, resulting in an estimated total annual expenditure of $1.9 million.
Currently, the grant award amount is capped at $10,000 per year as documented in the 2020 Neighborhood Block Watch Grant Program Application Guide. On April 10, 2019, the City Council authorized the funding of $1.5 million annually for NBW grants. In FY 2018-19, 172 grant applications were approved. The total amount of the award was $1.45 million. If the $1.5 million annually remained constant, only 125 grants could be approved at the $12,000 award amount. The effect would be a recommendation to increase the amount of funding authorized per year from $1.5 million to $2.064 million per year (an increase of $564,000 per year).
Contract Term
The funding period for the 2021 NBW grants is July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022.
Financial Impact
No matching funds are required.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
A recommendation to increase the award amount to $12,000 per grant award was unanimously approved by the Public Safety and Justice Subcommittee at the May 13, 2020 meeting.
The NBW Oversight Committee voted to disapprove this request at the May 21, 2020 Neighborhood Block Watch meeting with a vote of 6 ayes and 3 nays due to the current financial situation that has arisen due to COVID-19.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Assistant City Manger Milton Dohoney, Jr. and the Police Department.