The Village of Williston Park Board of Trustees unanimously approved an application for $700,000 in community development block grants last Monday.
According to Village Mayor Paul Ehrbar, Williston Park is only eligible to ask for funds for residential rehabilitation and handicapped-related projects, and are currently in the process of installing an elevator at their firehouse, as well as making their bathroom facilities handicapped accessible
Ehrbar said the village has $400,000 in bond money, and they are reaching out to public officials to get additional funding that the village has been told is available, as well as the Nassau County Office of Housing and Community Development.
The village also plans on asking for $25,000 in residential rehabilitation funding. The community development funds come through the federal government through Housing and Urban Development, which are then handled through Nassau County’s office of community development.
“It is designed to assist residential rehabilitation with people who have limited income, and provide monies for improvements with handicapped facilities and certain areas in the community with needs they may have,” Ehrbar said.
Village trustee Teresa Thomann suggested the figure of $25,000 for residential rehabilitation, and that the village build an application with $300,000 for firehouse renovations to cover part of elevator repairs, as well as the handicapped accessible bathrooms, and accessing the lower level for the volunteer fire fighters as office space and standby space.
Ehrbar explained that the village asked for $50,000 for the firehouse last year, and received $10,000—however said that Williston Park is further along in the process this year.
Ehrbar also said the village has received $15,000 for residential rehabilitation in the past few years, which is based upon the recipient’s economic status, and includes work on heating systems, doors, windows, roofs, handicapped bathrooms and siding. Residents who are seeking to file an application for residential rehabilitation are required to send a request to the village, which is then forwarded to Nassau County.
“Residential rehabilitation is usually fairly easy, in fact, we went over our budget recently and some monies were moved around to cover rehab, so I don’t see a problem in getting that $25,000,” Ehrbar said.
Ehrbar explained the need for an elevator in the firehouse as the building being open for public use, and members of the department, while may not be actively fighting fires, still attend meetings at the firehouse.
Thomann said the firehouse could be used as an emergency activation center for village residents, and the village plans to make it as accessible as possible.
