That $500,000 grant, if approved, would be used for street and drainage infrastructure improvements in Bethel Twp. on Cooper Avenue and Edgewick Street, which have 60.5% of their population in the low to moderate income grouping.
There would be a 10% funding match by Bethel Twp., and the timeline for the project would be January 2026 to December 2027.
The department received three applications for critical infrastructure funding this year, from Bethel Twp., New Carlisle and Springfield Twp.
“To my knowledge in the 10 years I’ve been here, this is the first time we’ve ever received an applicant for critical infrastructure outside of the city of New Carlisle. They have historically always been the applicant for funding,” said Ethan Harris, Clark County Land Bank executive director.
Harris said those grant applications have historically been for residential roads in New Carlisle on the northwest side of town around Prentice and Rawson drives. Harris said last year marked the first time in his tenure that the state denied their application (also for Rawson Drive that year).
This year, the two other applicants were Springfield Twp. for Cherokee and Valley Drive, and Bethel Twp. for Cooper Drive and Edgewick Street. The Bethel Twp. project was deemed the most critical of the three. The township has not been a recipient of CDBG funding.
Harris said this funding is an open application and competitive grant, so there’s not a set amount of allocation they’d get. He said these competitive grant cycles happens about every year, or sometimes more often than that.
As for next year, Harris said Springfield Twp. is a good application allocation, with Rawson Drive in New Carlisle being the second in terms of criticality.
The decision on whether Bethel Twp. gets the funding is up to the state of Ohio “whether or not it’s competitive with the other applications throughout the state.”
In May, the department held its first public hearing to let citizens know about this and other programs, how funds may be used, what activities are eligible and other requirements, Harris said.
The CHIP funding, which includes New Carlisle as a partner, is to help low to moderate income households make home repairs.
Harris said New Carlisle can apply separately from the county, but historically has been chosen as a partner so the funds they would receive go to the county and they can administer it both inside or outside of New Carlisle.
“We just have the technical expertise and just makes good government sense to do it that way,” he said.
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