Federal Community Block Grants Available for Somers
The Town of Somers is eligible for federal Community Development Block Grants, Westchester County Board of Legislators Chairman Michael Kaplowitz (D-Somers) told the town board last week.
The federal grants were not provided to municipalities in Westchester for the past few years because of the county’s ongoing disputes with the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development over the county’s affordable housing settlement with the federal government to construct 750 affordable units.
Kaplowitz told the town board that the grants were available to Somers, which has been active in recent years in attaining several affordable homes. As a result of an agreement with the federal government, the CDBGs are now once again available to Westchester municipalities that have been determined to have provided sufficient affordable units, he said.
“We’ll take a look at it,” Somers Supervisor Rick Morrissey told Kaplowitz.
Kaplowitz updated the town board on a variety of other issues in the county. Though they struggled on the court in their recently-completed first season at the County Center in White Plains after moving from Pennsylvania, the Westchester Knicks were a success at the box office, he said
“They have made Westchester their home,” Kaplowitz said.
On another issue, Kaplowitz said county government did not have the power to stop the controversial Spectra Energy high powered natural gas pipeline from being expanded to the local area. The federal government has the ultimate say over the placement of the expanded pipeline, Kaplowitz said.
“We don’t have jurisdiction,” he said. However, the Board of Legislators is concerned about the pipeline and where it would be expanded to. “We’re concerned about the Blue Mountain Preserve,” he said.
Morrissey told Kaplowitz that Spectra Energy recently informed him that it was no longer planning to have the pipeline expanded into the 53-home Preserve complex.
