Q: When are planning bodies not eligible for certain planning grants?

A: When they’re community boards in New York City.

From Community Board 6 comes a reminder that a measure that will help these entities do planning is awaiting NY Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s signature. An email says:

You may recall that two years ago Senator Velmanette Montgomery and Assemblywoman Joan Millman introduced into their respective houses a bill that would allow Community Boards to apply for certain planning grants from the Brownfield Opportunity Areas program administered by the State of New York. That’s right. The Community Boards, New York City’s municipal community-based planning bodies, were not eligible for planning grants from the State of New York. You can’t make this stuff up.

Despite the bill passing both houses last year, it was vetoed by Governor Pataki for technical reasons. Flash forward a year, and the revised bill (A.1088/S.557) passes both houses again. It was just transmitted to Governor Spitzer for his signature this past Friday, July 20th. You can really help make the difference if you act right away by weighing in with the Governor’s Office. Please let him know that you think giving Community Boards the ability to compete for resources from the State in the form of planning grants would be a good thing.

That sound like it’s definitely the understatement of the day.