Lakes Region towns are celebrating a big step toward grant money that will benefit different projects to revitalize community assets.

In response to proposals made by several towns in Cumberland County for Community Development Block Grants, the Application Review Team for the program made recommendations to the Municipal Oversight Committee on March 6.

“I’m totally happy about the amount we got,” said Derik Goodine, Naples Town Manager, and also a member of the oversight committee.

Naples applied for just over $51,000, and the review team recommended the town get $50,000, for renovations to the Edward I. Singer Community Center, a building donated by a philanthropist about five years ago.

Bob Neault, a Naples-based attorney who has been deeply involved with efforts to make improvements to the aging building, said the grant money makes it possible to update the building so it may be used for a wide-range of purposes.

“It will absolutely be used by many different agencies within the town,” said Neault.

But Neault is perhaps most excited about using the Singer Center for the town’s after school program, something he has been invested in for 14 years.

The after school program used to be run at Crooked River Elementary and Songo Locks Elementary schools, but when space started to get tight, Neault approached the town about using the first floor of the Singer Center for the program. The building was vacant, after the Naples Grange moved out due to low membership, said Neault.

About two years ago, Naples Grange had bolstered its membership, and other organizations, like the Lake Region Theatre Company, began to show interest in the Singer Center as well.

But to use the second floor of the building, it was apparent that the town had to make updates, particularly pertaining to fire code. And so the Singer Community Center Committee formed, and members began working on a proposal, with other town officials, for a Community Development Block Grant.

Neault said the money will pay for things like interior modifications to structure, fire escapes, a sprinkler system, and water filtration equipment, to name a few.

Like Goodine, Neault was happy with the $50,000 recommendation, and said it should suit their needs well.

Recommendations to the Municipal Oversight Committee were approved at last Thursday’s meeting, but the amounts need final approval from the Cumberland County Commissioners. And for some communities receiving significantly less money than they applied for, those decisions are anxiously awaited.

For example, the town of Gray applied for a relatively large sum of money, $150,000, for a downtown revitalization project. But the Application Review Committee recommended the town receive less. The total amount may be from $85,000 to $135,000.

Because of uncertainty relating to Gray’s grant, county commissioners are withholding final approval of grant money until a concise figure is determined.

Cumberland County Commissioner Dick Feeney said that figure depends on how the county finances administrative fees, and whether a Windham agency will use money awarded last year. Money could be freed up, said Feeney, if the Windham money is not used, and if the county chooses to pay off the administrative fees over two years rather than one.

Either way, George Thebarge, an economic development consultant for the town of Gray, feels the grant money received bodes well for Gray Village, the area the town is seeking to improve.

“This is a very positive step, and we are very encouraged,” said Thebarge.

Thebarge added that it is hard to say how the revitalization plan will be affected if the town receives closer to the $85,000 end of the spectrum.

“A significant portion of it will depend on support by voters and business owners,” said Thebarge. “At this stage it’s just a concept, not a contract.”

In Standish, plans relating to renovations at the Steep Falls Library are more specific.

The library was built in 1916, and is in need of several updates, inside and out. The town applied for a grant of $36,400 to bring the building up to par, and received $31,000.

Paula Paul, the librarian at Steep Falls Library, is relieved to know that repairs are on their way for the slate roof, two fire places, chimney, lopsided front steps, and electrical system.

“It’s like the little hub of this community,” said Paul, who estimates 30 children come in each week for story hour. Several other groups use the library as their meeting place, and bean suppers that draw about a hundred people are served in the library each month.

Paul’s ultimate dream is to have a community room added to the library. That project, however, will not be financed by this year’s grant.

“We feel very fortunate that we got the grant we got,” said Paul.