Grant writer for CDBG – DR projects in the City of Montpelier, Vermont

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The Agency of Commerce and Community Development (ACCD) announced the opening of the application process for $67,845,000 in Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funding in response to the July 2023 floods. These funds will benefit communities most impacted from the 2023 floods in regions designated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in consultation with state officials. Designated Most Impacted and Distressed (MID) areas include Lamoille, Washington, Caledonia, Orleans, Rutland, Windham, and Windsor counties.

The City of Montpelier was heavily impacted by the July 23rd event with damage to residences and businesses as well as local government buildings, infrastructure, schools, and state’s Capitol Complex and Federal building. To mitigate against future losses and to build resilient infrastructure, the City has identified five (5) potential applications for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) – Disaster Recovery (DR) funds. These include:

1. Country Club Road site (CCR) infrastructure and LMI housing project- ($10M) The primary use of the proposed funding would be the replacement and extension of utilities up East Montpelier Road (US Route 2) from the roundabout to Country Club Road and then up Country Club Road to the CCR site. This project will also include roadway and intersection improvements. These infrastructure improvements will enable the development of 300 or more housing units at the CCR site in the near future. Until the pre-application was submitted, the city was unaware the Vermont Community Development Program (VCDP) would require the housing project to be a part of the application. As the city doesn’t have a Low-Moderate Income (LMI) housing project ready to go, it is unknown if we will need to hold our application until February to get a developer on board.
2. Home Farm Way /Pioneer dam removal ($760k). Vermont Emergency Management (VEM) has asked that the city submit the Home Farm Way/ Pioneer dam removal project for DR funding. Currently the state has agreed to pay all the match but if CDBG-DR covers the match, then they can use their unrestricted funds on other mitigation projects in the state.
3. Bailey Dam removal (1.93M). This was not funded by the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) but VEM recommended submitting it to CDBG-DR.
4. Elm Street culverts (2.5M). Three culverts on Route 12 (Elm Street) failed in July 2023. They are each about half the size they need to be to properly handle high water flows. We believe replacing these is critical to serving residents in the northern parts of Montpelier and for mutual aid to Middlesex and Worcester.
5. Water Resource Recovery Facility protection ($3.065M). This project will elevate Dog River Road and build a berm to protect the plant from inundation from water coming over Dog River Road. The project also includes a bypass to the plant to protect influent and effluent from destroying internal systems. These are intended to protect our $80M treatment plant from what is an obvious flooding risk.

Each of the five projects is well developed with engineering and design work in process or complete. The only missing element currently is the LMI housing project for application #1. The city has not identified a housing partner, and it will be unlikely to have one before September 30. The City will meet the VCDP before August 22nd to identify which may be eligible for funding in this program. This could reduce our application pool to something less than five. VCDP has recommended that all applications be prepared by professional CDBG grant writers to expedite review and approvals. The city does not have anyone on staff with such experience. As such, City Council has authorized the expenditure of funds to hire a grant writer to help prepare Montpelier’s five applications.

Please submit a letter of interest with a commitment to meeting the grant deadlines and describing your experience in writing successful CDBG grants. Please note in your letter: Specific grants and communities (or other organizations) you have worked with. Contact information for one or more that we may use later as a reference. We will check references for our finalist(s). Hourly rate and time estimated for completion of applications. It is likely the contract will be hourly with a not to exceed provision.

If you have any questions about this project or the RFP, please address them via email to For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address. . Questions and responses may be shared with the other consultants as applicable.

Respondents should submit the Letter of Interest via email to:

Mike Miller, Director of Planning & Community Development

Email: For security reasons, you must enable JavaScript to view this E-mail address.

The selected consultant will need to demonstrate current General Liability and Workers’ Compensation insurance coverage that meets the City of Montpelier requirements prior to the issuance of any contracts.

This RFP is not an offer to contract. The City is not responsible for any costs incurred by firms in preparing and submitting responses to this RFP. The City reserves the right to reject any or all submissions, to waive any informalities in the process, and to negotiate with any qualified firm. The City of Montpelier is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Mike Miller, Director of Planning & Community Development

Email: mmiller@montpelier-vt.org