MANSFIELD — A local group is seeking Community Development Block Grant funds in the amount of $185,000 to create a youth service center that would feature an after-school program, as well as a roller rink.
Millennials Create pitched Mansfield City Council its idea Tuesday night during a public hearing to discuss proposal requests for the CDBG.
Four members of the group took turns sharing why they believe in building a facility that would house activities such as roller skating, basketball, arcade, dance, outdoor basketball, zip lining, an after-school program and tree house summer camp at North Lake Park.
The former roller rink known as the Coliseum once stood in that area.
“Skating is a positive activity we plan on providing,” one group member noted. “It’s good for the mood. Have you ever seen a person roller skating and frowning at the same time?”
The group envisions this space to fulfill a number of purposes, including youth education, community engagement, recreational activity and more. The educational component will target theater, crafts and music exploration.
“Our focus as Millennials Create Foundation is to focus on neighborhood development and youth development,” the group’s proposal reads.
Millennials Create has held events in the past, including “The Flint Event,” a fundraiser aimed at supporting residents of Flint, Michigan affected by the water crisis. The benefit, which featured live performances, fashion, poetry and artwork, raised 200 cases of water and almost $600 in donations.
The group plans on organizing more events in the future, including a basketball tournament, a 5K run and a talent show.
Prior to the group’s presentation, Ed Tharp, community development and housing director for the city, noted that the available CDBG grant funds for this year are estimated at $105,000.
There were six proposals submitted, amounting to $606,320.
With that in mind, Third Ward Councilman Jon Van Harlingen asked Millennials Create what’s the minimum amount the group could receive to help get this idea off the ground.
Group member Trai’Shaun Beard responded, $150,000.
“This will help get us started, but we do plan on reaching out to other foundations and other grants that we could apply for,” she said.
Richland County Transit
The Richland County Transit Board is requesting $70,000 to support the door-to-door, complementary para-transit service that is required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The RCTB provides both regularly scheduled fixed route and ADA para-transit services throughout the transit service area from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
“This grant application, as in prior recent years, is for funding to support the door-to-door transit service for persons that are elderly and/or disabled,” said fiscal officer Kathy Adams. “This is some of our most vulnerable population…They are not able to use the fixed route service. They may not be physically able to walk to the roadside or to stand and wait for the bus. They may not cognitively be able to understand how to transfer from one bus to another.”
In any given month, RCT provides 700 to 1,000 ADA para-transit trips that are currently subsidized through the CDBG.
“Without the local matching funds, we can’t even apply for the federal funds, and, of course, without the federal funds there would be no service,” Adams said.
NECIC
The North End Community Improvement Collaborative has applied for $28,320 in grant funds that would be used to support the coordination of the Community Garden Network and the administration of the Community Garden Grant program.
Deanna West-Torrence, executive director for NECIC, said the city has supported the community gardens for a few years now. Gardens are located in five of the six wards.
NECIC’s support for community gardens started in 2008 when the organization awarded a North End Small Grant to the Atherton Avenue Community Garden. Since then, the Community Garden Network has grown to 28 community and school gardens in Richland County, 22 of which are in the city of Mansfield.
The gardens help meet a number of needs — from access to fresh produce, educational opportunities, recreational activity and more.
“The downside of not keeping these gardens up or not funding them is that they become blight,” West-Torrence said. That’s exactly the opposite of what NECIC wishes to do. In fact, the group has partnered with the local land bank to turn blighted properties into community gardens.
Last year, NECIC was awarded $16,000 in CDBG funds, West-Torrence said. If the organization were funded at the same level it was the previous year, West-Torrence believes that would be enough to maintain its Community Garden Network and Community Garden Grant program.
“But we would not be able to increase those and maybe start those new gardens,” she said.
III Enterprises KRB
III Enterprises KRB is requesting funding in the sum of $300,000. The funds will be used for emergency repairs/rehab assistance to eliminate blight and slums in the community.
“We have estimated that we would like to help 25 or more property owners per year depending on the magnitude of repairs that are needed following the established guidelines from the city of Mansfield community development management program guidelines,” said Carline Curry of III Enterprises.
Akua Hair Clinic
Operated by Trai’Shaun Beard, Akua Hair Clinic is asking for $15,000 in start-up money. Akua Hair Clinic will be located at 524 Park Avenue West.
Beard, a 2009 Mansfield Senior graduate, received certification from Toni Love’s Training Center in nonsurgical hair loss replacement.
“Becoming a certified hair loss specialist, I am able to work closely with local doctors and dermatologists to provide a service that patients need for hair replacement and hair growth options,” she said.
She plans on providing hair replacement services at her clinic, including Islay Beauty Collection and Hair Visions International, as well as more traditional methods, such as wigs and smaller hairpieces. The hair replacement services will be integrated into the context of a traditional salon, she said.
Also, the clinic will create employment opportunities for local high school graduates, she said.
Culliver Reading Center
The Culliver Reading Center has requested funds in the amount of $43,527.52 to support its services, which include one-on-one tutoring and mentoring, as well as trips to the Blust Avenue Teaching Garden and Mohican Outdoor School.
The Culliver Reading Center is looking to address the low literacy rates in Richland County school systems by offering a variety of programs that will target the youth at the early stages of their academic careers and work to lay a solid foundation of the basic skills necessary for a successful future.
Since 1992, the Culliver Reading Center has aided more than 3,000 children and families in the county, according to Culliver Reading Center Director Debra Wherry-Bay.
“We do know that we can’t do this without the help of the community,” she said.
