Gadsden City Council to pursue millions in state and federal grant money
Grant money was again the priority at the Gadsden City Council's May 21 meeting, as members authorized city officials to pursue a nearly $1 million Transportation Alternatives Program grant from the Alabama Department of Transportation.
The money — $781,926 from the state with a $195,482 city match for a total of $977,408 — would be used for sidewalk and streetscape improvements along Chestnut Street from South Fifth to South Sixth streets, as part as an ongoing initiative to improve walkability in Gadsden.
The council also gave final authorization for the city to seek a an Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program construction grant of up to $15 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation for East Gadsden.
No city match would be required because of the area's demographics, and the money would be used for sidewalk improvements there as well as a pedestrian bridge over the Coosa River to link the area with downtown.
And it also authorized an engineering services agreement with CDG Inc. that's another step in the final phase of the South 11th Street Project. Along with resurfacing and straightening the roadway from Randall Street to the Martin Wildlife Park, it would create a sidewalk network that would allow someone to walk from downtown to Gadsden City High School.
“I know y'all probably get tired of us sitting up here talking about these grants,” council member Jason Wilson said. “But this is incredible. This is the state of Alabama giving us ($781,000).”
Council President Kent Back called it a quality of life issue, especially for residents who don't drive and need to walk or at least use some type of motorized chair or scooter to get around.
“Citizens want the ability to walk to where they're going, and we need to improve that in Gadsden,” Back said, noting that walkability is also a key selling point in industrial recruitment efforts.
Wilson said it's especially important in the downtown corridor, where so many residents of places like Daugette Towers use those chairs and scooters.
“This gives them clean, safe access to things like the post office, Johnson's (grocery store), doctor's offices along Bay Street,” he said. “The value of improving these sidewalks is hard to calculate.”
The council also authorized the Gadsden Police Department to seek 27 replacement and six new hire bulletproof vests through the Bureau of Justice Assistance's Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership Program.
And it gave city officials clearance to seek Gadsden's share of a $220 million settlement opioid crisis settlement with distributors Cardinal Health and Cencora.
Council members stressed that money won't just go into the general fund for general use, it must be used in continued opioid alleviation efforts.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Gadsden eyes grant money for quality of life initiatives
