(Seguin) — The City of Seguin has secured millions of dollars in federal funding that will help bring new life to a long-dormant youth facility.
Mayor Donna Dodgen announced last week that Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz confirmed the city has been awarded $2.3 million for improvements to the former Boys & Girls Club building.
The property, located on Zorn Street next to the Sebastopol House, was also previously known as the Activity Center.
Dodgen says the city worked closely with De La Cruz for an extended period to secure the funding.
“It was a total $13 million package, and we were the $2.3 million of that. So, I am so excited. We’ve been working really hard on this for a year and a half, if not longer,” said Dodgen.
Dodgen says the money represents an important first step, but additional funding will be needed to fully renovate the building. The city also plans to pursue more federal dollars for other community projects.
“We have a little bit of money to add to that. If you remember a few years back, we didn’t lower our taxes by two cents. We lowered them by one cent, so that we could then start banking that money into an account to add to this $ 2.3 million that we need for refurbishing the Boys and Girls Club,” said Dodgen.
Dodgen says these efforts are critical to Seguin’s long-term future.
“We will be requesting more. I’m just here to tell you. We’ll also be requesting some other things. I know there are some other groups within our city that want some things. We want some things for Texas State Technical College, which really fits into these line items of these grants and things. So, I just want to say thank you,” said Dodgen.
The former Boys & Girls Club has been unused for several years and requires significant repairs before it can again host youth-related programs.
The funding award was formally announced during last week’s meeting of the Seguin City Council.