The Grants Pass City Council received staff updates on Urban Renewal Agency Projects, the future Owl Plaza and American Rescue Plan Act Allocations during its workshop session on Monday. Some informal decisions were made as well.
City Economic Development Director Dana Pearce presented a five-year strategy to implement Urban Renewal Agency (URA) projects based on the approximately $2 million in taxes the agency receives each year.
City Finance Director JC Rowley said the top three identified URA projects are the Owl Plaza, the Midland-Washington property recently purchased from Asante and Caveman Pool. He said other identified projects in need of funding include debt service for the new water treatment plant, and sewer and water infrastructure extensions to the Spalding Industrial Park. The City Council plans to hold a public forum prior to adopting the five-year implementation strategy.
Community Development Director Brad Clark presented an update on the Owl Plaza which he said will be the first project of the URA. He said the combination parking lot and downtown plaza will feature a new sidewalk, new shade sail, five benches, two bicycle racks, 10 trees and 30 bollards due to the curb-less perimeter. When not in use as a plaza, the Owl Lot will have 26 parking spaces which is one more than there is currently.
Clark said final engineering is complete and the cost of the Owl Plaza will be $1,672,486. He said a "buy-a-brick" fundraising campaign will begin this month and a request for proposals will go out in November, with hopes the project can begin by next summer.
When the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic, funding was provided with the understanding that all monies would be obligated by December 2024 and all monies would be spent by December 2026, with any leftover funds returned to the federal government. The government has issued a final rule that includes a "safe harbor" provision which allows the City to place approximately $4.9 million in "government services" that provides the Council with more flexibility with current ARPA projects.
