While grant writing agency Randall Funding and Development
landed a $120,000 grant for traffic safety in the waning days of
its contract with the city, Hollister lost an opportunity to get at
least $500,000 guaranteed by the company.
While grant writing agency Randall Funding and Development landed a $120,000 grant for traffic safety in the waning days of its contract with the city, Hollister lost an opportunity to get at least $500,000 guaranteed by the company.
The disturbing reason appears to be because city officials didn’t ask for enough grant money – unbelievable in these tough economic times.
Randall Funding used an escape clause to get out of the deal in which it had guaranteed to get a half-million dollars in grants – anything from traffic safety grants to money for new fire engines – over two years. But the city let the company off the hook by not living up to its end of the bargain.
All the city had to do to hold Randall Funding to the $500,000 guarantee was submit grant requests totaling $1.75 million. But the city fell short, only submitting $1.3 million in grant requests. That allowed Randall Funding to get out of the deal, keep the $100,000 the city had paid for its services and wriggle out of the commitment to deliver a half-million bucks.
Over the life of the contract, Randall Funding landed Hollister about $150,000 in grants, so the deal wasn’t a total loss. The city came out with $50,000 more than it spent. Still, that’s not a great coup considering the city spent $100,000 on the company out of its general fund. That’s city money that can be spent without restrictions – on police or fire department salaries for instance. In return for the investment, the city landed grants that must be spent on specific, defined purposes.
The city is facing a struggle to balance it’s budget while providing essential public services like emergency protection. It would have been nice to be able to spend that $100,000 in areas that truly are needed. Hiring another police officer, for instance, would be a good use for that money – the Hollister Police Department has a backlog of about of 1,000 unsolved cases and officers are working overtime to ensure there are enough police on the streets.
Still, the $120,000 grant – to be paid over two years – landed last week will be used for traffic safety. Police will use the money to buy eight radar guns and pay overtime for officers to nab speeders. That’s a worthy cause.
What really stings is there are many worthy causes that would have received money if only the city had tried a little harder. It’s appalling that Hollister failed to get more money for its ailing budget because officials didn’t meet the minimum amount of grant applications even though they had two years to do so.
“I’m blaming the grant writer and the staff people,” Councilman Robert Scattini said. “It’s terrible.”
We couldn’t agree more. The city is in bad financial shape and can’t afford to squander its money or the opportunity to cash in on a significant investment.
To respond to this editorial or comment on this issue, please send or bring letters to Editor, Hollister Free Lance, 350 Sixth St., Hollister, Calif. 95023 or fax to 637-4104 or e-mail to ed****@fr***********.com
