Fort Smith agency funding panel recommended

The Fort Smith Board of Directors could approve as early as Jan. 19 a new panel to more thoroughly review the about $227,000 the city provides each year to local social service agencies.

In years past, the city board allocated funds to local service providers and other non-profits like The Fort Smith Classic, a PGA-sanctioned golf tournament that raises money for local charities. The city funded approximately $227,000 in requests for fiscal 2009 — an amount near what the city funds each year, according to City Finance Director Kara Bushkuhl.

Providing city money to the services began as an effort to assist The Boys & Girls Club and other groups that provided youth activities. As with any program that hands out tax money, requests for the money grew, with the board having to make tough and controversial decisions about who to fund and how much.

On Aug. 11, the board created a task force to develop suggested procedures for reviewing requests from the agencies and to come up with a list of names to serve on the review panel.

A Dec. 29 memo from Tracy Winchell, with the city’s office of Economic Development, to City Administrator Dennis Kelly lists the following persons and their committee assignments for the review panel as proposed by the task force.
• Karen Brown, social/community services committee (Brookfield Assisted Living)
• Joe Derrick, recreation committee (ABF Freight System)
• Madeline Martinez, core committee (University of Arkansas at Fort Smith)
• Elizabeth Momand, arts and humanities committee (University of Arkansas at Fort Smith)
• Jeromy Price, arts and humanities committee (What If Creative)
• Steve Rinke, recreation committee (Fort Smith Radio Group)
• Barbara Peterson, core committee (BancorpSouth)
• Sherry Savage, social/community services committee (Fianna Hills Nursing Home)
• Peggy Weidman, core (retired)

Core committee members will review applications from all categories (social/community service, recreation, arts and humanities) and serve on each of the three committees, according to Winchell’s memo. Members of the core committee will draw for 1-, 2- or 3-year terms, and members of the other three committees will draw for 1- or 2-year terms.

The city’s new guidelines require the following allocation of the fiscal 2010 budget of $227,700: 30% to arts and humanities; 37% to recreation; and 33% to social/community services. Winchell’s memo notes that 26 applications for financial support were submitted.

“Staff and the Outside Agency Task Force respectfully request the mayor and board approve these nine members so that they may meet with the original task force and then set about reviewing applications and recommending contract awards,” Winchell noted in the memo.

The task force members are:
• Tabitha Embree, BancorpSouth
• Robert Morgan, community volunteer
• Genia Smith, representing the Fort Smith Heritage Center (Clayton House)
• Monica McKinney, Girls Inc. director
• Alvin Bradley, representing Lincoln Youth Center
Rick Foti, director, Community Services Clearinghouse
Joe Mendoza, at large