LISBON — Councilors’ faces brightened and applause broke out Tuesday night when the town economic director announced receipt of a $320,000 Community Development Block Grant for the Lisbon Streetscape Project.  

“We applied for the downtown grant in 2015 and were not successful,” Director of Economic and Community Development Tracey Steuber said. “But we were very persistent and successful in 2016. We weren’t going to give up.” 
 
Town councilors voted 5-0 to hold a public hearing Nov. 1 to discuss the acceptance of the grant.
 
The money would be available for downtown businesses to make building and sign improvements as part of the revitalization program.
 
The award requires a 25 percent match, or $80,000, from the town.

An additional $5,000 will need to be raised by the town to meet the required match.

According to Town Manager Diane Barnes, there will be more than enough money in the undesignated fund to cover this from another project that is expected to come in underbudget. 

Steuber said the total amount secured from Economic and Community Development in one year equals $670,000.

The Town Council voted 5-0 to accept a Homeland Security grant of $15,258 as part of a three-year plan to fund a generator for an emergency shelter at the high school. The project is estimated to cost $61,750. The town previously agreed to cover the shortfall of $46,491.

Lisa Ward, director of the local Emergency Management Agency, told the council Tuesday night that she will apply for the grant again for the next two years. The town has three years to use the money, she said.

Accumulating money from these and other grants will shrink the town’s match as more funds are obtained, Ward said.

The Police Department was awarded a grant of $3,485 by the Homeland Security Grant Program. The grant will be used to upgrade exterior security cameras on the Town Office, Police Chief Mark Hogan said.

In other business, the council voted 5-0 to approve the School Committee’s request of up to $20,311 for renovations of the Gartley Street School and installation of a dishwasher at the Lisbon Community School.

The council voted 5-0 to accept a bid from Patriot Mechanical not to exceed $4,480 for the heating/ventilation/air conditioning service contract.


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