Vowing to watch how every penny is spent, the City Council
Wednesday voted unanimously to reallocate a grant of $50,000 for
the South County Dayworker Center.
Vowing to watch how every penny is spent, the City Council Wednesday voted unanimously to reallocate a grant of $50,000 for the South County Dayworker Center. The money comes from an unused portion of the 2002-03 federal Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG).
Council also voted 4-1, with Councilman Larry Carr dissenting, to approve a loan, not more than $180,000, to Weston Miles Architects, that would help to defray costs to them of off-site improvements incurred by the firm hosting the center for three to five years on their property. A loan of $15,000 to the Dayworker Center was also approved, 4-1. Both loans are at no interest, amortized over 10 years but expect to be paid back much sooner.
Originally designated for improvements to Galvan Park that are on hold, the CDBG money can now be used to finish the Dayworker Center under construction at Depot Street and East Main Avenue. The $50,000 could be returned for Galvan’s use from the next year’s grant cycle, said Anthony Eulo, assistant to the city manager, if the funds are still in the federal budget. Future reprogramming, Eulo said, would need to be approved by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.
Eulo told the council that the money was needed despite several large contributions of materials, time and money, and despite extreme penny pinching, the center still had a gap of $57,000. The center’s organizers will search for further private contributions, especially to pay for the temporary parking lot required by the city.
The gap is between expected expenses of $180,620 and revenues of $123,649.
CDBG funds are intended to support low-income residents. The Dayworker Center was developed in response to dozens of casual laborers waiting near Main and Depot to be hired for a day’s work. Some residents complained and a group from St. Catherine Catholic Church, bolstered by representatives from St. John the Divine Episcopal and other churches plus private citizens, have worked for more than two years to make a center a reality.
Mayor Dennis Kennedy and Councilwoman Hedy Chang, both members of the committee, complimented each other and the committee on their hard work.
Charles Weston and Lesley Miles, principals in the architectural firm, purchased the old, derelict Isaacson Grain Co. building between the railroad tracks, East Main Avenue and Depot Street. The building is undergoing a complete renovation into modern offices for WMA and others and, possibly, a future restaurant, bakery or other business useful to the burgeoning downtown core.
Miles said after the council meeting that the firm is donating $200,000 in services to the temporary center, during which time the center’s board of directors will look for a permanent site. The center has agreed to pay WMA the sum of $1 per month for the use of the firm’s land.
The $180,000 loan was requested to pay for the additional sidewalks, gutters and utility undergrounding WMA would not have to pay if they were not hosting the Dayworker Center, Miles said.
“These came up later in the planning,” Miles told the council. “Nevertheless, they are good ideas, because, right now, water from Main Avenue is a standing lake on the site.”
Miles indicated that the loan, while nominally for 10 years, would be paid off much sooner, they hoped within three years.
“While the loan is amortized over 10 years,” she said, “but the intent is for the loan to come due when building permits (for a permanent center), which has to be done within four years.”
The Dayworker Center’s $15,000 loan is also deferred for 10 years but the committee has agreed to hold annual fundraisers to repay it. Council members agreed to help with the fundraisers as they have done twice already with a Mexican fiesta in October and a New Year’s Eve dinner/dance.
REQUEST FOR CONCEPTS
At the same meeting, council also voted to move to a Request for Proposal stage for four projects seeking RDA loans to boost downtown:
• The Downtown Association asked for a $5,000 grant to pay consultant fees to help it form a business/property improvement district (BID/PBID).
• Sam Azar plans to add a second 6,000-square-foot story to his building on the northeast corner of Monterey Road and East First Street. Azar has agreed to convert the ground floor to retail use and move the commercial space to the second floor along with four to eight residential units. He asked for a triple façade grant.
•Investor Dave Scoffone asked for $150,000 for façade and tenant improvements, handicapped access and restrooms for his building at 17330 Monterey Road. He will receive a five-year loan at 2 percent interest, with annual interest-only payments and a balloon payment.
Tenant improvements to turn the building into a sports bar – to be called Sports Book – are included in the loan. The loan funds would be released when the sports bar opens for business. The RDA has already approved a triple façade grant for the building.
• The applicant received a triple façade grant of about $60,000 to Meduri Trust to upgrade the exterior of the Nob Hill Center on West Main Avenue. Meduri will be spending $500,000 of their own money on the project.
Councilman Steve Tate suggested waiting to ask developers to prepare their proposals until council decided whether or not the money would actually be available. As the council looks everywhere for money to build a new library, there is the chance that part of the $3 million could be used for that purpose.
The full council determined that it would ask for the proposals.
