The City of Wrangell is about to apply for a competitive Community Development Block Grant. That’s federal funds that are distributed by the state. And it’s a competitive bidding process with only $2.6 million available for all of Alaska. Last year, the city hoped it could get up to $850,000 to upgrade the public safety building. But the state felt that wasn’t really a priority for the community. Now the city is tasked with finding another project, one that could actually get funded this time around.
City Manager Lisa Von Bargen says her go-to project is getting a new fire truck. A new truck could cost between a third to half a million dollars.
Fire Chief Tim Buness says the firetrucks his department has now are old. There’s four of them that are 17,
Von Bargen says any upgrades to the town’s water system are top priority. But this money couldn’t pay for an entire water project. Instead, it could go a lot further for a smaller project like a new firetruck, she says.
The assembly did not take action on this matter. The assembly will decide on what project to pursue at a later date.
