REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
August 20, 2020
FROM: TJ MILLER, Director
Parks, After School, Recreation, and Community Services Department
BY: KRISTINA CHAMBERLIN, Assistant Director
Parks, After School, Recreation, and Community Services Department
SUBJECT
Title
RESOLUTION - Approving the application(s) for per Capita Grant Funds
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Council adopt the RESOLUTION to authorize application(s) of grant funds through the State Department of Parks and Recreation’s General Per Capita Program.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The General Per Capita Program allocates grant funding based upon a jurisdiction’s population. Statewide, there was a total of $185,000,000 allocated to fund park rehabilitation, creation, and improvement grants with encouragement to utilize awards to rehabilitate existing infrastructure and to address deficiencies in neighborhoods that lack access to the outdoors. Forty percent of the funds were allocated to sixty-three County and Regional Park Districts and sixty percent of the funds plus an additional $2,000,000 was allocated to six hundred and thirty-six cities and districts that applied for this funding. The allocation for Fresno has been determined to be $177,952. We have confirmed that Fresno as a whole, meets criteria to be exempt from providing a 20% match.
The specific projects to be included in the contract are being identified and applications will be submitted accordingly. PARCS staff has recently concluded meetings with each of the Councilmembers to determine the strongest candidate projects to be submitted for funding.
The attached Resolution is a requirement of the State Department of Parks and Recreation and serves as means by which the grantee’s Governing Body (Fresno City Council) agrees to the terms of the contract and confirms that the grantee has funding to complete, operate and maintain projects associated with the contract. The Resolution also designates the position title of the Governing Body’s representative authorized to manage all matters relating the identified projects (PARCS Director).
BACKGROUND
In June 2018, California voters approved Proposition 68, a general obligation bond, authorizing $4.1 billion for creation and rehabilitation of state and local parks, natural resources protection projects, climate adaptation projects, water quality and supply projects, and flood protection projects. The release of funds occurs in cycles and with specific project specifications and criteria.
The current Per Capital Program has a total of $185 million allocated for grant funding. While the program funding is available for local park rehabilitation, creation, and improvement, grant recipients have been encouraged to utilize the funds to rehabilitate existing infrastructure and to address deficiencies in neighborhoods lacking access to the outdoors.
In January 2018, the City Council adopted the Parks Master Plan Update. The adoption celebrated the culmination of nearly 18 months of community outreach, stakeholder engagement, staff analysis, and a comprehensive evaluation of parks and amenities. The Plan serves as the visionary guide for improving Fresno’s parks, open space and recreational services. The Plan also provides recommendations and strategies and highlights the community’s priorities for improvements. The overwhelming common goal identifies a focus on making substantial improvements to the city’s existing park system first and to seek out alternative funding for new park development. The State Per Capita Park Program provides an opportunity to move toward this goal.
Staff has regularly engaged with each council member to identify park priorities and maintains compiled results of the priorities and will use these lists to make recommendation of the proposed projects to include in with the grant application.
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed the resolution and approved as to form.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
A resolution for applying for grant funding is not a project for the purposes of the California Environmental Quality Act.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference is not implicated because the resolutions do not include a bid or award of a construction or service contract.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact at this time as the above action is authorizing the submission of grant applications.
Attachment: Resolution