At the Rosewood Community Council meeting on Thursday, July 15, Rebecca Munnerlyn, president of the Rosewood Community Council, informed the residents of two applications the Columbia Development Corporation have submitted for federal funding that could have an impact to the Rosewood area. The first grant is called the Greening America’s Capitals grant, a grant that is a cooperative effort between the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation that is only available to state capitals in the United States. The two agencies will pick a neighborhood within the chosen state capital to test concepts related to sustainability. A goal of is to start a program they can replicate in other parts of the country. In the grant application the area described is the Edisto Court/Owens area, which includes Rosewood. The grant will provide a team of planners to come up with a vision for the neighborhood. According to Munnerlyn the guidelines for this grant require opportunities to foster a sense of place, sustainability, revitalization, and economic, and social benefits.

The other grant is a Tiger Two Planning/HUD Sustainable Community Challenge grant teamed by the Department of Transportation and HUD. The grant offers $75 million of funding, $35 million in Tiger Two planning grants, and $40 million in sustainable community challenge grants. It will localize planning activities that will lead to projects that integrate transportation, housing, and economic development.

On Wednesday July 14, the grant application went in front of city council. If the grant is awarded to the Rosewood/Owens area, the East Central Master Plan of 2004 and Columbia Owens Master Plan of 2002 will be affected. Other areas that may be affected by this grant could be the Rosewood commercial corridor, resident and commercial service areas, neighborhood protection measures, identifying housing challenges and maintaining affordable housing stock, and storm water management. Representatives from the airport commission, the Rosewood Merchant Association, the railroad, and the Rosewood area could all provide input to how the funds would be distributed. The proposed budget, $850,000, has already been submitted. Successful grants will be awarded after September 15, 2010.