RISON - Rison Mayor Charles Roberts told a group of volunteers Tuesday night that unless the city can prove that 51 percent or more of its residents are considered low-to-moderate income (LMI), it will not be eligible for nearly all of the grants offered through the state.
Roberts held a meeting Tuesday with 10 people who were willing to take part in a door-to-door survey to see how many residents meet the LMI requirements. While no official start date was set, the mayor said he wants the survey to coincide with the start of the new school year, which begins Aug. 12.
Up until the 2020 census, Rison’s percentage of LMI residents had always been above 51 percent. However, the 2020 census showed that percentage had fallen to 47.9 percent.
Most of the grants that Rison and other small towns pursue come through the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission. He said there a very few, if any, grants available for cities that have a LMI percentage below 51 percent. “If it comes through the state, we don’t qualify right now,” he said.
As a result, he said the city could be missing on on potentially millions of dollars in grant money for everything from infrastructure to fire trucks, hence the decision for the city to conduct its own survey.
During the meeting, the mayor handed out copies of the four-question survey that was put together by Barlow Consulting LLC of Glenwood. Barlow is working with the city through a contract with the Southeast Arkansas (continued from page 1) Economic Development District (SEAEDD). The mayor said the data collected through the survey will be turned in to Barlow Consulting which will then relay it to the federal government.
The four questions are generic in nature, and Roberts pointed out that using names on the survey is prohibited. The primary focus of the survey is household incomes rather than names. Here are the four questions:
How many families reside at this address?How many persons are there in your family including yourself?Where does the …