Jefferson City Community Center leaders say council is withholding funds

Funds Frozen, Safety Stalled

Leaders of the Jefferson City Community Center say they are caught in a bureaucratic standoff as city council members indefinitely table $60,000 in federal funds meant to make the street outside their building safer, KOMU reported.

The community center is located at 608 E. Dunklin St. in the Foot District, a historically Black neighborhood. Patsy Johnson, the president of the center’s board, described the daily danger on the street. “You have businesses all around us,” she said. “You have Lincoln University. You have Employment Security right up the hill. Across the street is the busiest park in the city. Per MoDOT, it’s over 20,000 vehicles per day that come right up this street.” The street is too narrow and isn’t safe for the volume of traffic, she added.

A Project Approved, but Payment Paused

The solution seemed straightforward. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved a community development block grant for a project to address these concerns. Documents show the plan was to add protected parking, install flashing beacons, and bring a ramp into compliance with accessibility standards. Mayor Ron Fitzwater signed off on the project and grant, which allocated $60,000 of the estimated $155,000 total cost.

Yet, months have passed, and the community center board members say they have yet to see a penny of those funds. “We’re approved through the environmental HUD and everybody else,” Johnson said. "It's just the politicians, the city council, the current ones, have wanted to table it, downsize the project." Progress on the project halted after the Jefferson City Council voted to indefinitely table the measure intended to distribute the money.

In an effort to understand the reasoning behind the decision to table the disbursement, KOMU 8 News made two attempts to contact members of the Jefferson City Council for comment. Julie Allen was the only council member who responded. “As a city council member, my responsibility is to carefully evaluate every project, listen to residents and stakeholders, and ensure that taxpayer dollars—whether local, state or federal—are being invested responsibly and in ways that best serve our community,” Allen said.

The ‘Use-It-or-Lose-It’ Risk for a Neighborhood

An anonymous official from a mid-Missouri housing authority stated that community development block grant funds are not easily transferable to different projects. Strict processes, including approvals and environmental testing, must first be cleared, and these can take years to complete. More critically, if the funds are not used as they were originally designated, they can be forfeited after a period of time. The funds are “use-it-or-lose-it” in this type of grant, the official said.

This reality has the community center board members worried. They might see none of the funds that were allocated, and if the city council continues its indefinite tabling, the money could be lost. “This project represents more than infrastructure,” said Earnette Smith, another board member. “It is a commitment to public safety, accessibility and responsible stewardship of federal resources. Our community has already invested time, planning, and trust into this initiative. We ask that you do the same by ensuring its full and proper execution.”

Smith also highlighted the building’s own unsafe conditions, noting it is not compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act.