Cuyahoga County Designates Casino Tax for Community Development Grant Program

The following is a press release issued by Dave Greenspan:

Cuyahoga County Council Designates Casino Tax Revenue Fund for New Community Development Grant Program.  Competitive Grant Program to be administered by Department of Development.

Cleveland, OH June 28, 2016 - Cuyahoga County Council has taken another step toward determining an effective method for competitively allocating a portion of the County's casino tax revenue. At the regular meeting of June 28, 2016, Council voted to approve the creation of a new grant program focused on community development projects. The Community Development Supplemental Grant (CDSG) program, introduced by Councilman Dave Greenspan in January 2015, makes $1 million from the Casino Revenue Fund available annually to all municipalities, and eligible community development corporations, in Cuyahoga County for projects such as community master plans, streetscapes, parks, and senior centers.

Councilman Greenspan remarked on the widespread benefits of the program. "This is an excellent opportunity to meet the need for more community-based development projects. Casino revenue is a flexible funding source that should be used to improve quality of life throughout the county. This program is uniquely positioned to provide targeted benefit to residents in collaboration with our urban neighborhoods and suburban communities."

Councilman Anthony Hairston, who co-sponsored the legislation along with Councilmembers Sunny Simon, Chuck Germana, Michael Gallagher, Yvonne Conwell, and Shontel Brown, said "This program has already been well received by the community. Organizations are developing creative, small-scale projects that will have a big impact on the neighborhood level. This is exactly the type of legislation I hoped to work on as Chair of the Community Development Committee."

Grant applications will be evaluated by the Cuyahoga County Department of Development, which will then make recommendations for approval to County Council. Each grant award is limited to a maximum of $50,000. The program is intended to complement or otherwise enhance projects funded through other sources and will be administered in conjunction with and using the same process as the federally funded Community Development Block Grant program.

Greenspan believes that these meetings demonstrate "responsive and responsible" leadership.

For more information on Dave Greenspan visit www.DaveGreenspan.com.

Requests for interviews should be emailed to [email protected].