Department seeking ideas, priorities from Niagara Falls residents
The Niagara Falls Community Development Department is kicking off the public participation and application phase of the for 2019 Niagara Falls community development action plan. The department welcomes local residents to once again be the most important component of this annual planning effort.
"You are the expert on your neighborhood. Improving quality of life in your city begins with your input," said Seth Piccirillo, director of Niagara Falls Community Development.
This year's application includes specific requests for proposals for public services proposals. All public service proposals are welcome, however, the department will give special consideration to proposals that address the following areas:
•Substance abuse counseling or prevention, especially activities aimed at preventing opioid and heroin overdose deaths. The overdose death rate from any opioid among people aged 18 to 44 years is the second-highest of any county in New York (
https://on.ny.gov/2RZECen).
•Lead paint prevention and education programming (not rehabilitation or remediation).
•Workforce development and job training.
•Youth programming for children ages 12-17.
Annual community development action plans are funded by the U.S. Department of Housing Urban Development through its Community Development Block Grant Home Investment Program and Emergency Solutions Grant program. Through the citizen participation process, the Falls' team develops an annual action plan that lists and prioritizes local housing and non-housing community development needs.
Neighborhood planning meetings are scheduled for
- Monday, Oct. 22, 6 p.m., at Niagara Street Elementary, 2513 Niagara St.
- Tuesday, Oct. 23, noon, at LaSalle Public Library, 8728 Buffalo Ave.
- Thursday, Oct. 25, 6:30 p.m., at Doris Jones Family Resource Center, 3001 9th St.
- Saturday, Oct. 27, 10 a.m., Carnegie Building, 1022 Main St.
Citizen Participation Survey
This survey allows citizens to submit annual priorities and ideas. It is open until Friday, Nov. 9, online at
https://nf-cd.org/participate; or in hard-copy format at the Carnegie Building, 1022 Main St. (8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday), or at neighborhood planning meetings.
Applications
In addition to community participation, the 2019 action plan grants provide HUD program funding to community organizations to make improvements to the City of Niagara Falls. For the first time, the Niagara Falls Community Development action plan applications will be submitted online, improving the efficiency of the process. Visit the grants page at
https://nf-cd.org/grants for more information on how to apply.
All grant applications are due at or before noon Friday, Nov. 9.
