The City of San Marcos is seeking community input on programs and projects to be funded through its Community Development Block Grant, or CDBG, as it prepares the CDBG Consolidated Plan for the 2025-30 period, according to a Feb. 3 news release.
The overview
San Marcos residents can share their thoughts by taking the CDBG Consolidated Plan survey, open from Feb. 1 to Feb. 28, or by attending public meetings. The upcoming meetings are scheduled for:
- Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. in the Dunbar Recreation Center
- Feb. 19 at 12 p.m. via Zoom
- Feb. 25 at 9 a.m. in the San Marcos Senior Citizens Center
Digging deeper
The survey is focused on five different community needs:
- Housing: Citizens will rank the priority of topics like housing repairs, accessible housing and affordable housing.
- Public facilities and infrastructure: Questions ask residents to rate the importance of projects such as neighborhood parks, sidewalks, community gardens and community centers.
- Transportation and jobs: Residents will rank priorities for accessible transportation for the elderly and disabled, covered bus shelters, hike and bike trails and job training programs.
- Services and programs: The survey asks citizens to prioritize services like senior citizen support, abuse victim services, youth programs, homeless services and drug and alcohol treatment services.
- Housing Issues: Questions will gauge how serious housing problems are in San Marcos, including rent prices, housing discrimination, predatory lending and foreclosures.
Looking back
In the 2020-24 survey for the previous Consolidated Plan, the top priorities were in public services, with youth programs ranking highest, followed by homeless services and abuse victim support.
Comments also highlighted concerns over housing affordability, with many residents noting a lack of affordable housing options compared to the local income levels.
A total of 192 people responded to the 2020-24 survey, and more than 50 public comments were submitted.
