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The Nebraska Department of Economic Development on Thursday awarded $14 million in Community Development Block Grant funds to 38 projects in 33 communities through the 2025 Downtown Revitalization, Planning, and Public Works opportunities program.
The grant funds are a part of a federal program administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The money comes from the state’s 2025 Community Development Block Grant allocation and carryover from prior years.
$4.5 million of the grant funds was allocated to seven communities that are improving critical infrastructure. The Public Works Program funding across the communities includes sewer main replacements, water system improvements and construction projects for new and existing fire halls.
Walthill is one of four communities using the grant money to update its water system. Kevin Connot, the village’s economic development planner, said Walthill, like other small communities in the state, has outdated water infrastructure.
“A lot of the water infrastructure is quite old, with outdated water lines and valves and just isn't functioning.” Connot said. “So, there were some failures with valves failing and water leaks and things that just needed to be updated.”
The Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households, or SEARCH, program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture allowed the village to cover part of the cost to evaluate the engineering and planning necessary to identify the water issues.
Connot said the $600,000 grant will be used to address issues highlighted by a study conducted as part of the SEARCH program.
“The benefit’s going to be higher water quality, higher reliability of the system,” Connot said. “And the improvements that will be taking place with this funding will include, exclusively, water valve replacements and waterline replacements that are replacing some of the existing services,” Connot said.
Maureen Larsen, director of the state Department of Economic Development, said in a news release that the funds are meant to retain young people and attract new residents while improving quality of life in rural areas.
According to the department, the funds provided aim to help communities tackle projects that enhance local vitality, public health and safety, economic well-being, and quality of life.