Des Moines city council members do not want to jump into applying for a federal TIGER grant before they have explored all the parameters of the plan.
City councilor Christine Hensley said though she wants funding for a rapid bus transit in the downtown area, she wants a group of city staff, along with the city manager, to look into the specifics of the TIGER grant.
“There are several moving parts out there that they could come back with several recommendations,” said Hensley. “It does not preclude that in the future we would not go after a TIGER grant, but rather hopefully this would give us an opportunity more or less to get the house in order and address the concerns that have been expressed.”
Fellow councilor Chris Coleman also supported the need to put a pause button on the grant application process, but stressed the importance of funding for big projects like the bus program and bridge infrastructure.
“Des Moines is faced with a monumental task for the next several years of rebuilding our downtown bridges,” said Coleman. “And it’s not just to have newer or prettier bridges. There’s safety issues number one, and we can protect our downtown and the core of our community from flooding problems.”
Coleman said the need to rebuild the 100-year-old bridges will score very well within the TIGER grant criteria.
For now, though, the application for millions of dollars of federal money is on hold.
“I see it as pushing the pause button,” said Hensley. “It gives us the opportunity to work with all players, and hopefully it does not create any divisiveness within the community.”
