After the Carroll County Board of Supervisors approved a motion that would provide $5,000 per year for the next five years for a Community Attraction and Tourism (CAT) grant on Monday morning, the subject was brought before the Carroll City Council Monday night. City Manager, Mike Pogge-Weaver asked council members to support the application for a $660,000 grant to be used in the Carroll Public Library renovation project. He says the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) has awarded more than $19 million in funding to 52 different library projects since 2002. Carolyn Siemann was the first to speak on the subject, raising some of the same concerns brought before the supervisors that morning.
She says she agrees with them and believes their word should be good. The funding mix the city promised before the referendum vote was her main concern. Carroll resident, Jean Ludwig, also commented on that same promise.
Some of this, she says, will come from Carroll County. Mayor, Dr. Eric Jensen, responded by saying that these funds have been used many times in the past, including for the Rec Center, aquatic center and the Depot, and that these are the exact purposes for which the grants are designed. Seimann added that this is a competitive award with only 30 percent of CAT grant dollars given to communities of populations 10,000 or less. The approval of the application went to a vote and was passed with five in favor and one, Siemann, voting against. The grant application will be submitted by Monday, April 16, and Pogge-Weaver says they expect to have notification of the awards within about three months.
