Tucson, Ariz. – The following grants were recently awarded or made available in Southern Arizona. For more information, subscribe to Rep. Grijalva’s grants newsletter at http://grijalva.house.gov/grants.
Awarded Grants and Cooperative Agreements
Date: August 23
Recipient: Nogales Community Development
Granting Agency: Department of Housing and Urban Development
Amount: $1,999,177
Purpose: This Rural Innovation Fund ‘Comprehensive’ grant will go toward revitalizing the downtown core of the rural colonia in Nogales and helping low-income residents move out of poverty. The grant will help build a multi-use training and resource center, provide rental housing rehab and foreclosure mitigation services, and provide access and transportation to child care, among other anti-poverty initiatives. Leveraging for this project is $1,000,743.
Date: August 23
Recipient: Department of Housing and Urban Development
Granting Agency: Elfrida Citizens Alliance, Inc. (Elfrida, Ariz.)
Amount: $300,000
Purpose: This Rural Innovation Fund ‘Single Purpose’ grant will go toward promoting sustainable energy-efficient housing, business and community facilities. The Citizens Alliance will provide technical assistance to small business and homeowners. Leveraging for this project is $153,734.
Date: August 23
Recipient: San Carlos Housing Authority (Peridot, Ariz.)
Granting Agency: Department of Housing and Urban Development
Amount: $300,000
Purpose: This Rural Innovation Fund ‘Single Purpose’ grant will go toward building and rehabilitating 40 single-family homes and providing quality affordable rental housing. Each new rehabilitated home will have cost-saving energy efficiency upgrades, including Energy Star advanced lighting, hot water distribution, and high performance windows and radiant barriers, among other features. Leveraging for this project is $150,000.
Date: August 23
Recipient: International Sonoran Desert Alliance (Ajo, Ariz.)
Granting Agency: Department of Housing and Urban Development
Amount: $300,000
Purpose: This Rural Innovation Fund ‘Single Purpose’ grant will go toward completing the final phase of the Curley School renovation project. In 2005, ISDA purchased the campus and renovated the high school and junior high school into 30 affordable artisan live/work spaces. This project will convert an elementary school into a conference and learning center with bed/bath units to complement available guest rooms and generate income. Leveraging for this project is $150,000.
Date: August 26
Recipient: City of Yuma
Granting Agency: Department of Justice
Amount: $68,653
Purpose: The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program allows states, tribes and local governments to support a broad range of law enforcement activities. Yuma’s application proposes to allow the Yuma Police Department to purchase computer hardware, software, vehicle mounts, and data cards for mobile data computers. The requested equipment purchases will enhance interoperability and data sharing between the police department and sheriff’s office through their joint Computer Aided Dispatch, Records Management System, and Jail Management System. For more information, contact Yuma City Manager Greg Wilkinson at (928) 373-5011.
Available Funds
Date Announced: Applications accepted until April 2012
Recipients: Arizona farmers affected by drought, fire and natural disasters.
Granting Agency: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Amount: Variable
Purpose: Provide needed financial support to farmers affected by weather and natural disasters, pursuant to a disaster designation by Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.
Facts: Vilsack sent an Aug. 16 letter to Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer designating Apache, Cochise, Graham, Greenlee, and Santa Cruz counties as primary natural disaster areas due to losses caused by drought, wildfires, and high winds that occurred earlier this year. In accordance with section 321(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act, Gila, Navajo, Pima, and Pinal counties are named as “contiguous disaster counties.”
A Secretarial disaster designation makes farm operators in both primary and contiguous disaster areas eligible to be considered for assistance from the Farm Service Agency (FSA), provided eligibility requirements are met. This assistance includes FSA emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) Program. Farmers in eligible counties have 8 months from the date of a Secretarial disaster declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each emergency loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of production losses, security available, and repayment ability. SURE Program applications for 2011 crop losses will be accepted in 2012, when the 2011 farm revenue data required by statute becomes available.