Huachuca City gathers public ideas on $516,000 in federal CDBG funds

Mayor Johann R. Wallace opened a public hearing March 21 on the Town’s anticipated FY2026 Community Development Block Grant allocation, telling attendees the council would gather citizen input to build a projects list for a future resolution.

William Osborne of SEAGO explained the funding streams and eligibility rules and said, “The Town of Huachuca City is expected to receive approximately $516,000 in FY2026 of federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds,” describing regional, Colonias and State Special Project accounts and the requirement that CDBG projects primarily benefit low‑ and moderate‑income residents. He advised the council to add candidate projects to the public record now so they can be included in the later regional application process.

Osborne and Town staff emphasized that regional account money is distributed on a rotation (roughly once every six years per eligible jurisdiction), that Colonias funding is competitive and biennial and requires shovel‑ready work, and that SSP (State Special Projects) grants can fund assessments and engineering that make larger construction proposals more competitive. Osborne noted that SEAGO provides technical assistance and application preparation for member communities and urged continuing communication with the Arizona Department of Housing to avoid forfeiting awards.

After the presentation the council opened the floor to public comment and recorded multiple project ideas, including modernization of public facilities, water‑system upgrades, parks and goat‑head weed removal, sidewalks and safe routes to school, library programming, after‑school services and low‑income housing possibilities. Mayor Wallace said the meeting would produce a candidate list for publication and a future decision; he asked staff to include every idea raised in the minutes so the public can respond before the council adopts a resolution.