On Thursday, the Austin City Council is set to formally?accept $2 million in federal stimulus HUD money.
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KVUE's Clara Tuma reports
>The money is expected to help create at least 200 construction jobs and has already been earmarked for four projects:
-- $500,000 to LifeWorks to help purchase land for a 32,000 square foot East Austin Youth and Family Resource Center.? The?new center will be on land adjacent to the ACC Eastview Campus and is scheduled to open in mid-2011.? ?The site will establish a Central Texas Workforce, Family and Financial Literacy Center; expand mental health services and job training; and provide space for after-school activities as part of its substance abuse, violence and pregnancy prevention programs.? "This comes at exactly the right time and helps us close on the land earlier than anticipated," says Susan McDowell,?LifeWorks executive director.
--$500,000 to PeopleFund to help construct the Center for Economic Opportunity.? The center will provide services to local small businesses and low- to moderate- income homebuyers.? The center will be on donated land at 1700 Alexander Avenue, near the Martin Luther King Station area.? Executive director Margo Weisz said PeopleFund has been working to raise money for construction, and was about $300,000 from its goal before news of the stimulus money.? "This is a really important piece of the funding," Weisz said.?
--$552,703 to help on the renovation and new construction of the African-American Cultural and Heritage Facility at a historic home on East 11th Street.
?The Detrick-Hamilton home at 912 East 11th Street was once owned by one of the first freed slaves in Travis County.? Renovations will be in three stages -- stabilization, renovation and construction.? The construction will preserve 800 feet of the historic structure and add additional square footage.
-- $250,000 to help build new sidewalks in Central East Austin.? An additional $200,300 will be set aside for administrative costs.
