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16 <br /> Commissioner Fowler said there has been the opposite problem the last few years, <br /> particularly with the population in elementary schools going down. She was wondering if the <br /> schools might use this for other purposes, like consolidation. She said she had also thought about <br /> how it could open up opportunities for more pre-K programming. She said that pre-K can improve <br /> scores later on. She said she would like to explore the potential of increased pre-K opportunities. <br /> Travis Myren said that was a good idea. <br /> A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Fowler, to <br /> authorize staff to provide notice to the parties of the Student Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance <br /> Memorandum of Understanding (SAPFO MOU) that the student projection methodology will be <br /> changed to either the one employed by OREd or Carolina Demography and to invite comment <br /> from the parties. <br /> VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> b. Community Climate Action Grant (CCAG) — FY 2024-25 Project Selection <br /> The Board: <br /> 1. Received the grant project funding recommendations from the Commission for the <br /> Environment (CFE) and the overall scores and comments from the CFE and Human <br /> Relations Commission (HRC) for the FY 2024-25 Orange County Community Climate <br /> Action Grant Program; and <br /> 2. Approved funding for the recommended Community Climate Action Grant projects for FY <br /> 2024-25. <br /> BACKGROUND: As part of the FY 2019-20 budget, the Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> (BOCC) established the Orange County Climate Action Fund to accelerate climate change <br /> mitigation efforts within the County. This initiative was motivated in part by the Board's ambitious <br /> climate goals, including a full transition to 100% renewable energy by 2050. The recently adopted <br /> Climate Action Plan establishes additional climate goals and outlines the actions and strategies <br /> that will enable Orange County to achieve these objectives, including the Community Climate <br /> Action Grant. <br /> For the FY 2024-25 funding cycle, $262,500 was allocated to general applicants to support climate <br /> action projects designed to benefit Orange County residents both socially and financially. The <br /> Board did not approve any climate funding for schools this year. In alignment with the Board of <br /> Commissioners' direction, the selection process for awarding funds was conducted through the <br /> Community Climate Action Grant program. <br /> The Community Climate Action grant program received twenty-five (25) applications in this round <br /> from a variety of applicants representing nonprofits, small businesses and public organizations <br /> whose total requests added up to $1,151,873. Grant applications were completed over the <br /> summer and reviewed by both the Commission for the Environment (CFE) and the Human <br /> Relations Commission (HRC) in fall 2024. Each of these Commissions voted to forward their final <br /> scoring and comments to the BOCC. <br /> The following is a rank-order summary table of the combined project scoring and <br /> recommendations for funding. More details on each project are available in Attachment 1. <br />