Council Allocates Block Grant Funds

Nearly $1.3 million in federal grant money has been earmarked for such projects as making four libraries handicap accessible and renovating the City Gym and Pool recreation facility.

The City Council allocated the funds Monday, including $275,000 for the gym and pool project. That facility, built in 1931 and home to Huntington Beach’s only indoor gym and pool, is undergoing a $2-million renovation.

Other projects funded with next year’s federal Housing and Community Development block grant are $270,000 in storm drain improvements at Silver Lane, near Heil Avenue; about $135,000 for two code enforcement personnel; and $85,000 for handicap-accessible play equipment at Oak View Community Center.

Last week, council members were concerned about the Citizens Advisory Board’s last-minute proposal to give nearly $100,000 to the nonprofit Huntington Beach Community Clinic, which offers medical services to low-income people. Now, the board has recommended that city staff examine using unspent federal grant money from the current year, or past years, for the clinic’s funding request.

Jackie Cherewick, the clinic’s executive director, said the money would pay for a new telephone and computer system at the clinic’s new facility.