The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development is getting blasted for pulling back promised funds for some infrastructure projects in Onondaga County. Last September, HUD promised about $500,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant funds to several municipalities in Onondaga County to help pay for various infrastructure projects. Two months later, the way HUD figured out which communities were eligible for the funds changed, and much of the funding was taken away.
"It pulls the rug out from underneath the planning so it puts a stop to the engineering, it puts a stop to the construction, it puts a stop to referendums," said Onondaga County Legislator Pat Kilmartin. "It puts an end to all the hard work when we’re at the goal line of finishing this project.”
Local officials are hoping Sen. Charles Schumer can help. Schumer says it's not fair to take money away from communities after the work has started.
"We need to make sure that we’re constantly taking a look at federal programs," said Schumer. "We need to make them cost efficient. No doubt about it. What we can’t do is move the goal posts in the middle of the game. That’s what HUD has done."
Schumer says he plans to call HUD Secretary Julian Castro and let him know that he doesn’t think eligibility requirements should be changed after an award has been made. The funds were earmarked for infrastructure projects in several communities, including the towns of Onondaga, LaFayette, Skaneateles and Van Buren, as well as the villages of Baldwinsville, Jordan and Marcellus.
"It’s a few hundred thousand dollars," said Schumer. "It’s a drop in the bucket to HUD, but it means everything to a village like Jordan or a town like Onondaga."
