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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - No. 2005-55RESOLUTION NO. 2005-55 A RESOLUTION OF THE LODI CITY COUNCIL REQUESTING CONGRESS TO PRESERVE THE EXISTING COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM WHEREAS, for 30 years, America's cities, including both large and small cities in California, have used Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) grants to create jobs, provide affordable housing, eliminate blight, and generate new economic investment; and WHEREAS, CDBG funds have played a critical role in community and economic development in Lodi; and WHEREAS, CDBG funds have been a powerful economic engine and a job creator, allowing Lodi to leverage private investment by employing hundreds of people and attracting millions of dollars in equity investment; and WHEREAS, COG funds represent a catalyst for creating more affordable housing, making it possible for Lodi to help build nine rental housing units this past year alone. CDBG-funded rehabilitation has resulted in dozens of families with clean, decent, affordable housing; and WHEREAS, the CDBG program offers a mechanism for building public infrastructure, whereby, Lodi used $250,000 this past year to provide handicap accessible sidewalks; and WHEREAS, the CDBG program has increased the quality of life in Lodi, as evidenced by the numerous parks projects and street lighting; and WHEREAS, the President has proposed a new "Strengthening America's Communities Initiative," which combines 18 direct grant programs, including CDBG, into one within the Economic Development Administration; and WHEREAS, at $3.71 billion, the new program (which combines 18 programs) is nearly $1 billion less than the current CDBG program alone; and WHEREAS, without proper funding for CDBG, we risk undermining the economic well being of our communities, the future generations that live there, and the nation as a whole. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Lodi City Council hereby requests that Congress enact a fiscal year 2006 budget and appropriations package that funds CDBG formula grants at no less than $4.355 billion, which is level with fiscal year 2005 allocations; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Congress maintain the CDBG as a separate and distinct program from other economic development programs that provides a direct and flexible source of funding to local governments; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Congress maintain the current "dual formula" system where 70 percent of CDBG funds go to entitlement communities based on population; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Clerk's office is hereby directed to mail certified copies of this Resolution to Senator Barbara Boxer, Senator Dianne Feinstein, and to the League of California Cities, Attention: Genevieve Morelos, 1400 K Street, 4Th Floor, Sacramento, CA, 95814. Dated: March 16, 2005 I hereby certify that Resolution No. 2005-55 was passed and adopted by the City Council of the City of Lodi in a regular meeting held March 16, 2005, by the following vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS — Hitchcock, Johnson, and Mounce NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS — Mayor Beckman ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS — Hansen ABSTAIN: COUNCIL MEMBERS — None SUSAN J. BLACKSTON City Clerk 2005-55