From economic development and infrastructure to sidewalks and fire trucks, the CAPCOG Regional and Planning Services Division has assisted local communities around the region with establishing projects that seek state and federal funding opportunities. CAPCOG’s goal is to help its communities identify issues and a possible funding to resolve them.
In recent months, CAPCOG has assisted cities and counties in applying for Economic Development Administration (EDA), Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) funds. It has worked on various aspects of the grant application process depending on a community’s needs to include identifying grant opportunities, assisting with grant writing, coordinated site visits, and researching and organizing data to support applications. It has been particularly skilled at assisting with community development and infrastructure project proposals. CAPCOG assisted in preparing six grant applications that requested $12 million for infrastructure projects from EDA disaster recovery funds for communities in Bastrop, Caldwell, Fayette and Lee counties. While the disaster funding is limited to those four CAPCOG counties, the application process for the EDA’s public works infrastructure grant is very similar, and CAPCOG could assist other communities in seeking those monies.
CAPCOG also has helped two communities apply for TDA-Fast Grants, which helps procure fire trucks and ambulances for non-entitlement rural communities using Community Development Block Grant funds, and two TxDOT Transportation Alternatives and Safe Routes to Schools grants.
The EDA anticipates announcing grant recipients in late May; the other applications are under review by their awarding agency.
