Neighborhood Steering Committee
Allocates 1996 CDBG Funds
Rob Latousek
On January 8 and February 12 the Tenney-Lapham/Old Market Place Neighborhood
Steering Committee agreed on proposals for the commitment of funds allocated
to the area by the Community Development Block Grant Commission for 1996.
The first proposal involves a commitment of $72,000 to the Madison Development
Corp. (MDC) for a Micro-Enterprise Loan Program targeted at businesses in
Census Tract 18, with particular marketing emphasis on businesses in the
East Johnson Business District. Loans may be in the $2,000-20,000 range,
with the expectation of a total of 12 loans, averaging $6,250. To receive
loans, borrowers will be required to take training courses, such as those
offered by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the UW, which
would be paid for by a scholarship fund included as a part of this program.
Applicants for this loan program must either qualify according to CDBG income
eligibility requirements or be able to guarantee the creation of new employment
for an income-eligible person, based on the size of the loan. Payments on
these loans will be recycled back into new loans, thereby extending the
potential life of the program to approximately ten years or longer, if needed.
The second proposal allocates the remaining $20,000 to the Red Caboose Day
Care Center for the expansion of their Summer Program for School Age Children
at Lapham School to include 14 new positions supported by scholarships for
residents of Census Tract 18 who fulfill CDBG income eligibility requirements.
A committee of neighborhood residents and school counselors will determine
any further criteria necessary to determine qualified candidates for the
limited number of positions. This is viewed as a pilot project, for which
the Steering Committee plans to apply to local, private funding sources
for future support.
Copies of the complete Neighborhood Plan are still available from several
sources: Dept. of Planning and Development, 215 Martin Luther King Blvd.,
Room G-100; Cork & Bottle; Lapham School Parent Info Table; Camelot Rental
Office; the Livery office, 200 N. Blount; or call Richard Linster at 251-1937.
Return to Table of Contents