I've Been One Poor Correspondent

It has been a while since I wrote an update on the Salemtown Citizen Advisory Committee's progress on finding a project for the HUD grant, but part of the problem is that we are making grindingly slow progress, and we have been set back for the last two months by a cancelled September meeting (we had already cancelled February's meeting due to Valentine's Day) and the neighborhood-wide August election-of-new-members meeting. Add to that one summer meeting where we started late because we did not have a quorum, and it feels to me like when we do get back to work it will be like coming out of a coma.

I have also been frustrated that when we meet we discuss our thoughts and feelings about the short-list of projects for the neighborhood there is very little research being done as to cost and feasibility of the projects. The little information we have came when Public Works met with us to address what projects they could and could not work on themselves. Not having vital information seems to make setting priorities wishful thinking in my mind. While some have fairly strongly-held beliefs about projects on which we should spend the block grant monies, I have a hard time committing to specific projects, because I have such little information to guide me toward a strongly-held belief. It seems to me we are discussing hypotheticals in best-of-all-possible worlds, and I want to keep my feet on the ground.

So, my block grant correspondence has been poor, but there has not been much to report. You haven't missed much.