Albany County Grants Office
As of July 1, 2006 the Albany County Grants Office relocated to the Albany County Annex Building located at 1002 S. 3rd Street, Suite 203. While the office is very enjoyable there is a lot of traveling back and forth between the Courthouse and the office to conduct grant business.
Currently Albany County has a portfolio of ninety seven (97) individual direct federal grants, federal pass through to the state grants, state grants, and private aid grants, and ten (10) grants for the Albany County Fire Warden. The Grants Office manages and keeps in compliance each of these grants. The office under the direction of Sheela Schermetzler assists other departments in financial and performance reporting, payment of vouchers, tracking and identifying grant revenues and disbursements etc. As recommended by the county's auditor, individual grant accounting spreadsheets are prepared for each grant for better accountability of revenues and disbursements. An intern, Darren Munoz was hired in September 2007 for approximately 20 hours per week to assist with the workload.
During this year the Grants Office has been writing a number of grants proposals of which the majority of them has been funded and includes:
State Land and Investment Board, North 9th Street (County Road 17) Paving and Reconstruction Project Cost Overrun grant, $465,000State Land and Investment Board, Sheriff's Office Evidence Processing and Storage Facility Cost Overrun grant, $300,000State Land and Investment Board, Satellite Imagery and Road Sign Project, $154,200 State Land and Investment Board, Bosler Landfill Groundwater Monitoring Project $11,250 and DEQ - $45,000Wyoming Department of Family Services, Juvenile Accountability Grant to continue the County Attorney's Juvenile Diversion program, $26,923Wyoming County Commissioner's Association Juvenile Accountability Grant to reduce violations of JJDP in Albany County, $63,280Wyoming Department of Health, Maternal Family Health-TANF grant that supports the Albany County Public Health in providing services to needy families, $246,171Wyoming Department of Family Services, TANF-Community Partnership Initiative Project Grant that supports the Our Families Our Future Young Parent Program and the Laramie Youth Crisis Center Extended Families Program, $74,300Wyoming Department of Agriculture, Emergency Insect Management Program for the control of West Nile virus, $47,125Wyoming State Forestry, Wyoming Urban and Community Forestry Grant to purchase trees around the perimeter and plaza of the Albany County Courthouse, $4,000Wyoming Business Council, Business Ready Committed Grant – CBM Associates Expansion, $3,000,000.Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund Grant for sculpture in Courthouse Plaza, $20,000.Wyoming State Forestry, Western States Wildland Urban Interface Grant for fire mitigation, $111,400Guthrie Foundation of Laramie for Courthouse Lighting, $6,300.
The grants that the County receive support all county departments. They also provide work for many local businesses, and non-profit organizations. Services and supplies needed for the grants are also procured through many local businesses. Many construction projects in Laramie are generated by the grants that the County receives. The County Road 17 (North 9th Street), the Courthouse landscaping project, the Evidence and Processing Storage Facility, the new CBM Associates facility, the remodeling of the Downtown Clinic, new air conditioning, ADA doors and elevator for the Albany County Public Library are construction projects generated through grants this past year.
The Grants Office has also been involved in an ongoing effort to locate funding for the Courthouse Landscaping Project. It is exciting to see the Courthouse Landscaping project being completed this year. We are extremely grateful to Laramie Woman's Club Laramie Rivers Conservation District, Laramie Garden Club, the Sunrise Rotary Club, and the Guthrie Foundation for their support of this project. During this summer and fall eighteen (18) benches for purchased by a number of private donors. All of the donations will be recognized in plaques in the Courthouse plaza.
Thirty-three local participants attended the Grant Writing Workshop in September and nearly twenty-five participants are expected to attend the Grants Management and Compliance Workshop in November. The community enthusiasm for the workshops will spawn new grant projects for the local community.
During the next year, refinement of grants management procedures and processes will take place. Funding for the remodeling of the Lincoln Community Center and the Civic Center will be of importance.
Sheela Schermetzler, Ed.S.
Albany County Grants Manager
October 31, 2007