Gainesville Council Approves Resolutions to Seek Park and Water Grants

Gainesville City Council approved two resolutions June 16 authorizing the city to apply for state grant money, one toward local park improvements through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and a second toward a $21 million upgrade to the municipal water system, according to the city's meeting record and agenda packet.

The park resolution clears Gainesville to seek funding from the department's Local Park Grant Program. City officials said at the meeting that the city plans to request $750,000, the most the relevant category allows, match that amount with $750,000 from local sources, and pursue more money beyond what the program requires. The department's grant schedule caps awards in its Local Parks Non-Urban Outdoor Recreation category at $750,000 and sets an annual filing deadline of Aug. 1.

Officials identified Public Management, Inc., including Jake McAdams, as helping prepare the park application. The work described during the council's discussion would involve Kiwanis Park, Pecan Creek and the Forsythe Transportation Skate Park. Officials also said the city was seeking corporate and local donations to make the application stronger.

Under the department's rules, the program works as a 50 percent matching reimbursement grant, meaning the state pays part of an approved project's cost after the work is finished and the local government covers the rest. In practice, that structure means the city would pay for the work up front and recover the state's share afterward. The agency also requires that any property funded through the program be dedicated as public parkland permanently, kept in usable condition and left open to the public.

A resolution of this kind authorizes city staff to file an application. It does not by itself secure any funding, which is decided by the state agency that reviews the request.

The council's second resolution authorizes a separate application to the Texas Water Development Board for a Water System Improvement Grant. The June 16 agenda packet lists a $21 million request to replace the raw-water pump station at Moss Lake and describes that program as a 100 percent grant requiring no local match, a contrast to the dollar-for-dollar commitment attached to the park request. The park and water requests go to two different state agencies and would be reviewed independently.

The two votes followed similar action earlier in the month. Records from the council's June 2 meeting show members approved two resolutions authorizing applications for Heartland Flyer grade-crossing grants, both of which carried local matching commitments.

The records reviewed for this report did not indicate that either of the June 16 grants had been awarded.