TRENTON, CA, July 09, 2010 — Mayor Tony Mack said yesterday that he will hire three grant writers rather than have a chief of staff, and he is planning a neighborhood cleanup effort later this month and free tutoring for students in the fall.
During a press conference, Mack said he is creating an Office of Grants and Funding as part of the mayor's office to take "proactive steps in seeking lucrative grant and funding opportunities from state, federal, public and private entities."
A number of candidates in the recent mayoral and council elections said winning more grants from the federal government and foundations should be a priority for the cash-strapped city, which is facing a projected $55 million deficit in the fiscal year that started July 1.
The city is already the recipient of numerous federal and state grants for public safety, health, and other services, but Mack asserted that, "without question," there were more untapped funds for the grant writers to find.
"We're hopeful that within the first month they'll pay for themselves," he said. Mack said he has spoken to prospective grant writers but he has not hired them yet.
The new employees will focus on finding money for public safety, gang prevention and senior citizens services, among other areas, and he will look into federal grants that are available now for infrastructure and bridge work and light rail expansion, he said.
He will also help nonprofits, civic associations and faith-based groups in the city find funding, perhaps by applying for grants on their behalf, he said. They will take advantage of eCivis, a grant search and management system to which the city recently subscribed.
The grant writers will occupy the offices formerly occupied by the chief of staff and by Barry Colicelli, who was the city's gang czar. Colicelli, now the coordinator of Trenton's Youthstat program, has not used the office recently, but he has a contract with the city through December.
Chief of staff was the title given to the statutory position of deputy mayor under former Mayor Douglas Palmer. The chief of staff and the business administrator were the top positions under Palmer.
Mack has said he does not intend to fill the deputy mayor job. So far, the top positions in his administration belong to his transition team co-chairs, Joseph Jacobs and Jack Washington, and to acting business administrator Bill Guhl.
During the press conference yesterday, Mack also said that, in concert with the Trenton Council of Civic Associations, he is creating the Mayor's Clean Sweep program. In two weeks, the city's civic associations will have a coordinated neighborhood cleanup, he said.
Mack also said he will ask churches to open their doors from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. to students for tutorials beginning this fall as a way to promote learning, keep kids off the streets and prevent dropouts. He said he had discussed the idea with the city's pastors during the mayoral campaign.
"They seemed to be anxious to take part in the new Trenton," he said.
In response to questions about the city's plan to lay off up to 400 employees because of its budget deficit, Mack said the plan had to be submitted to the state by next week for Trenton to be eligible to apply for millions of dollars in transitional aid.
The actual number of layoffs will depend on how much additional aid the city receives. The aid application is due in September, and the layoffs will go into effect Oct. 1, he said.
The eCivis Grants Network is an enterprise-wide, web-based grants management software solution that consists of three industry leading products- Grants Network: Research, Grants Network: Tracking & Reporting, and Grants Network: KnowledgeBase. Grants Network: Research assists organizations in finding the best available funding opportunities and Grants Network: Tracking & Reporting provides organizations with the most effective and industry-leading, web-based grants management and reporting system. Grants Network: KnowledgeBase offers organizations the tools to build exceptional grant knowledge and improve their internal grant processes and procedures. About eCivis eCivis Grants Network is the nation's leading grants management solution and the ideal platform for improving local governments' and community-based organizations' grants performance. For more information about eCivis, visit www.ecivis.com. For media inquiries: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
