Huntington Hears Ideas for Grant Money

By SHARREE JENSEN Staff Writer

Huntington City recently held a public hearing to get public opinion on what residents would like to do with grant money that the city is applying for. The city will be applying for the Community Block Development Grant Program for the 2004 year. The first step in the application process is to find out what the citizens would like to have, to better the community.
The grant has been available since 1974, and is open to communities of 50,000 people or less. The purpose of the grant is to help improve the community, and provide a better environment for residents. It is specifically meant for low to moderate income communities. The maximum amount the grant will be for the 2004 year is $81,000.
The council opened the meeting to residents’ suggestions for the money. Jacob Bawden, Bruce Bell and Paul Arnold suggested that the city put in a skate park for the youth. They mentioned that there are several youth that enjoy skateboarding, but there isn’t anywhere for them to do this. There are several signs that state specifically “no skateboarding.” The youth would like to see a place where they can go and skate legally.
Brent Gordon suggested that the city use the money to put up some chain link fences at the rodeo grounds to make an entry gate. He would also like to see a new tractor to pull the new grater, and a garage to store them in.
Hilary Gordon would like to see some more beautification done to the city. She would like to “take people’s breath away when they enter the city.”
Julie Jones suggested that they build a playground for the kids. Currently the only playground is the one at the grade school. She would like to see a city park with equipment for kids to play on. She would also like to see a “Welcome to Huntington” sign.
The city will also be conducting a survey of about 250 randomly selected homes to get an income bracket. The city must have 51 percent of the 250 surveyed in the low to moderate income bracket to qualify. The city encourages all residents to cooperate with surveyors when they come around.