WARREN - Girard Mayor James Melfi thinks his city deserves to know why the effort among communities dotting the Mahoning River to win a $32.4 million federal grant for neighborhood revitalization failed.
In fact, he wants it on paper.
''I would think Youngstown owes us a written explanation,'' Melfi said. ''We partnered with them. Maybe going on our own we would have had no chance at all, but I would like to have a shot.''
Melfi was speaking of the application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding. The money used to improve rundown neighborhoods and spur economic development was sought by in a joint effort by nine communities in Trumbull and Mahoning counties, with Youngstown's Community Development department taking the lead.
The application was shut out from any of the $2 billion available from the federal government.
The communities involved in a federal grant application to revitalize blighted neighborhoods were Warren, Niles, Girard, McDonald, Newton Falls, Youngstown, Campbell, Struthers and Lowellville. They were seeking $32.4. million.
Immediately following the Jan. 14 announcement, community officials reacted with outrage and confusion. Now participants are chalking it up to a learning experience after meeting with HUD. They said smaller cities such as Youngstown don't have the resources that other, larger communities have to submit these applications.
Still, some are pointing fingers, while others say criticism is unwarranted, given how competitive the process was.
Youngstown Councilman DeMaine Kitchen, part of a Mahoning Valley contingent who met with HUD officials last week, has said that Youngstown Community Development Director Bill D'Avignon should be punished for the failure. D'Avignon left holes in the application that helped sink it, he says.
Messages seeking comment was left with Kitchen Friday and Saturday.
HUD scored the application deficient in several areas, including management structure and past accomplishments. Last week, Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams HUD officials believed the application conveyed weaknesses in some of the approaches toward revitalization.
Essentially, that means HUD did not believe the project could be carried out even if money was awarded.
D'Avignon has said he is being unfairly criticized for the failure, a point former Campbell Mayor Jack Dill says he agrees with, especially since $15 billion in requests were made for an available $2 billion.
''We got out hopes up, especially when other people looked at it, saying it was a fantastic application because these nine communities went together jointly.
''But stop to think about the amount of money available and all the communities that applied,'' said Dill, mayor when the application was submitted. ''It really was a longshot to get this money, anyway. It's wrong to throw darts at this kid.''
McDonald Mayor Glenn Holmes and Newton Falls City Manager Jack Haney said communities submitted information to Youngstown for the application. Holmes said the village wasn't really consulted during the procedure and Haney said there was a series of meetings involving the communities to give direction to the application.
Holmes said he isn't blaming D'Avignon, saying it's a learning experience, and Haney said he has no issues surrounding the submittal.
''I still thinks it's a shame it didn't get funded,'' Haney said.
A message seeking comment was left with Williams on Saturday. Messages seeking comment were also left with officials from the participating communities.
The money could be used to acquire and rehabilitate foreclosed or vacant property, along with demolition, homebuyer financing and other uses. Of the 482 applications, 79 were funded.
Melfi said the funding would have helped the city plan beyond the spring, which is about when funding from the first round of NSP funding needs to be spent. In the first round, the city received about $350,000 and is partnering with Trumbull County to use the funding.
''It's a timing issue,'' Melfi said. ''This first round we have to have all the addresses in place for demolition by March, that is very difficult to do. What happens if a house becomes vacant after March and becomes and eyesore? In order to address that, we're going to have to use city funds.''