Lovell to look at citizens’ CDBG ideas

       The city has its improvement ideas, some neighbors have theirs, and there's only so much money to go around.
       This was the status of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program at the March 9 meeting of the Organization of Westside Neighbors (OWN). As a result, CDBG development coordinator Brad Lovell agreed to review the neighborhood requests and meet again with OWN at its board meeting April 27. “My job is to get input from the neighborhood,” he said.
       CDBG is a federally funded, locally administered program that pays for public improvements - most commonly sidewalks, curb and gutter - in residential parts of “strategy areas.” OWN is the neighborhood advocacy group for the older Westside's strategy area (basically south of King Street).
       Lovell does not know exactly how much money will be available for CDBG's 2006 calendar year (which starts April 1), but said he has been advised to budget for $131,000 (plus the carryover from 2005 of $128,000).
       His proposal is to use at least some of the money to fill in missing sidewalk along both Kiowa Street and Pikes Peak Avenue; citizen ideas include sidewalk infill on Bott Avenue, at Armstrong and 21st streets and on 21st Street between Colorado Avenue and Highway 24.
       “The Westside has some specific spots that have been neglected over the years,” commented Frank Wright, an OWN board member 20-some years ago who attended the meeting.
       Regarding possible locations, Lovell told citizens, “Give me a a phone call or an e-mail with a picture so I can go out and look it.” He added the caution that because of all the necessary planning and engineering coordination, no work “is going to happen overnight.”
       Lovell can be reached at 385-5049 or by e-mail at blovell@springsgov.com.

Westside Pioneer article