February 8, 2016 CITY OF MURFREESBORO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT PUBLIC SERVICE GRANT PROGRAM

You asked for an online application process … We listened. You’ve got it.

The City has selected ZoomGrants TM to be our on- line vendor for submitting and managing Public Service Grant applications.

Applicants will use ZoomGrants TM to submit their applications. The Community Development Department will use ZoomGrants TM to review applications. Subrecipients will use ZoomGrants TM to submit the mid-year and end-of-year reports.

First things first – Before beginning the application process, review the Public Service Grant Program Guide. The first four pages present the nuts & bolts of the Federal regulations governing the program.

Second, review the City’s Consolidated Plan – you can view a copy on the City webpage. Public Service Grant projects have to be tied to needs identified in the plan and you will have to identify them in your application.

Where should you look for needs in the plan? Check these sections: NA-40 Homeless Needs and Assessment NA-45 Non-Homeless Special Needs Assessment NA-50 Non-Housing Community Development Needs SP-25 Priority Needs

IMPORTANT - HUD requires all subrecipients receiving federal money for projects to have both a DUNS number and a System for Award Management (SAM) CAGE Code. To apply for a DUNS number online, visit To apply for a System for Award Management (SAM) CAGE Code, visit

Funding Availability $120,000 (Estimated)

You’ve reviewed the program regulations and the Con Plan and decided you have a project that fits the program guidelines and serves an identified need … What next?

Go to the City of Murfreesboro ZoomGrants TM page using the following link:

CREATE AN ACCOUNT AND LOG IN Create your ZoomGrants TM account and log in using the New ZoomGrants TM Account box on the righthand side. If you already have an account, log in using the boxes in the upper right corner of the page.

 After hitting the New Account button, you will directed to a page that will allow you to create the application.  After you hit the APPLY button, the homepage for Murfreesboro’s 2016 CDBG Public Service Grants opens and you will be able to begin the application process.

The Library The Library allows quick access to a number of documents germane to your application and the successful administration of a CDBG Public Service Grant. A link to the library appears on each page of the application unless you choose to hide it. All documents in the Library are also available on the City website.

The Application The application is divided into six sections: Summary, Pre-Application, Application Questions, Budget, Match and Documents. Navigate between sections using the tabs or the Next/Previous buttons at the bottom of each section.

Saving your work – ZoomGrants TM saves your work automatically as soon as you click outside the box in which you have been working or click into a new field. Exception: In the MATCH and DOCUMENTS tabs you will need to hit the gray ‘Refresh Page’ button. DO NOT use your Browser’s Refresh for this purpose.

The first step in completing an application for a CDBG Public Service Grant is completing the Summary section. The Summary section is used to record basic information about applicant organizations.

Use the Collaborators section in the ‘Summary’ tab of the application to invite others to work on the application with you.

Once an application has been started – but not completed – you can go back to it as often as needed to get it ready to submit by following the directions on the next slide.

1. Log in – After logging into your account, you’ll land on your Account Home page. 3. Click on the application title to get back to work.

PRE-APPLICATION  The Pre-Application consists of 11 questions designed to help applicants determine whether their organizations meet basic program eligibility criteria.  When the Pre-Application is complete, the Community Development Department is alerted of your organization’s interest in applying for a Public Service Grant.

The City recommends reading Chapters 1-3 of the Technical Guide for Determining Income and Allowances. Question 11 asks if your organization has reviewed Playing by the Rules. Electronic versions of both publications may be accessed in the application Library and on the City website ( id=116.) id=116

APPLICATION QUESTIONS In this section, applicants provide information about:  the proposed project and whom it will serve;  how the project fits a need identified in the City’s Consolidated Plan;  project outcomes and how they will be measured;  the organization’s capacity for administering the project; and  key staff members.

Items 6 and 9 are two of the most important in the application.

6. Provide a detailed description of your proposed project. Describe the work to be performed, including the activities to be undertaken or the services to be provided, the goals and objectives of the project and the method of approach. Be specific about the days/times of services and the frequency and duration of services received by the average client or participation. A timeline/schedule including project start date and completion date must be uploaded in the Document section.

 9. What needs or issues identified in the City's Consolidated Plan are addressed by your project?  A pdf of the Consolidated Plan can be found in the application Library or on the City website.

Applicants will enter dollar figures under the Budget tab, but there are several important money questions in the Application Questions section.

Is CDBG the primary source of cash funding for the proposed project?

If the City of Murfreesboro is unable to fund your proposed project or is unable to fund it at the requested level, will the project be undertaken by your organization?

If the response to Question 22 is "Yes," how will your organization fund the balance required to conduct the project? How would a reduction in requested funds affect the level of service provided by the project?

If your project is accepted but with funding less than requested – and you accept the grant - you will be required to submit an amended budget before the Subrecipient Agreement is issued.

Budget When the BUDGET tab is opened, the applicant will find two tables, one to identify funding sources and revenues for the project, and the other to identify expenses for the project. Totals for each column are automatically calculated.

Enter Funding Sources/Revenues first. Note that there are four columns: Item Description, CDBG, Committed and Non-Committed.

The first item is “City of Murfreesboro” and the first column is headed “CDBG.” In the first field enter the amount of CDBG funding for which your organization is applying. This should be the only entry in the CDBG column.

The other two are labeled “Committed” and “Non-Committed.

Committed funds – Money in the bank or other assured revenue streams. Non-Committed funds – sources of funding for which the organization has applied but for which the outcome of the application is pending.

Enter funding sources other than the pre-populated items Item Description column. For non-committed money add the expected award date. For example, Predators Foundation (8/1/16)

In the event that the City approves the application and the non-committed funds do not become available, the subrecipient will be expected to supply an alternate source of funding.

Below the Revenue table is the Expense table. It has been pre-populated with a number of common items. You can enter additional expense items in the Item Description column.

There are only two columns in this section: “CDBG” and “Other.”

Enter those expenses for which you will be seeking reimbursement in the “CDBG” column.

IMPORTANT – The Community Development Department will accept invoices for and reimburse only those expenses listed in the CDBG column. Travel expenses may be listed in the “Other” column and when properly documented will be allowed as match, but will not be reimbursed using CDBG funds. Also note that CDBG funds cannot be used for food.

MATCH Murfreesboro’s Public Service grants require a dollar-for-dollar match. The table in the MATCH section is for recording non-cash match.

The match can take a number of forms  cash donations or grant funds earmarked for the project;  agency funds used for salaries and other expenses related to the project;  the value of donated buildings or fair rental/lease value;  volunteer service time; and  in-kind donations.

Subrecipients will be required to submit documentation supporting match when requesting reimbursement. For example, if staff time or volunteer hours are used for match, time sheets showing time spent on the project. If a staff member or volunteer has duties in addition to the project, the submitted time sheets must show all time with the CDBG portion designated.

DOCUMENTS Opening the DOCUMENT tab reveals a list of documents to be submitted with the application. Most of the listed documents have been required in previous years. All requested documents are either required by federal statute/regulation or documents a HUD monitor would expect to find in the project file.

 To upload documents, click the ‘UPLOAD’ button on the line to the far right of each document requested. This will open the File Upload Window.  Follow the directions in the window to upload your document.  Once uploaded, be sure to test the links to be sure they are live and connect to the correct document.

The ZoomGrants TM document system is not designed to upload more than one file per item. If more than one document is needed for a category (i.e. “Are there other documents your organization considers pertinent to its application?” or multiple award/commitment letters), all should be combined into a single file for uploading.

Applicants will still have to submit one piece of paper no later than the application deadline: the Application Certification.

CHECKING YOUR WORK At the top of each section is a ‘Submit Now’ button. When you’ve completed each section, click the button. The system will check to be sure every question has been answered or any required documents uploaded.

SUBMIT THE APPLICATION When there are no more red items, the Primary Applicant will be asked to enter their initials and officially submit the application. The completion check does not look at data in the Budget or Match tabs. The applicant is responsible for ensuring the completeness and accuracy of these two sections.

2016 application deadline: 4:00 p.m. CST Monday, February 29, 2016.

Any questions or requests for technical assistance related to the application should be addressed to the Community Development Department by phone ( ) or or

Two important dates: March 3, 2016 – Public Hearing All applicants will be expected to have a representative present at this meeting.

April 6, 2016 Public Hearing on the draft Action Plan Successful applicants will be notified prior to this meeting.