Community Project Funding

Floor Speech

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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I rise as a proud Member to support the 13th Congressional District.

My district is the third poorest Congressional District in the country, and direct funding and aid to support our most vulnerable communities is so critical to communities like mine.

I want to take a moment to uplift the work that my team and I have done to deliver for our residents through the community projects funding.

I don't know if folks know, but we have the oldest Boys and Girls Club in the Nation, and they are going to see $2 million in investments to improve the facility in Highland Park so more of our young people can come into a building that is safe and a building that is going to be able to help them thrive.

Also, the Urban Neighborhoods Initiative's Southwest Detroit Creative Connections Collaborative; they are going to be able to create a safe space, community space for our families, especially our youth. This is the community I grew up in, with 20 different ethnicities.

We are also going to be able to help Detroit homeowners receive home repair grants for energy efficiency. Enterprise Community Partners is so eager to be able to work with my seasoned residents; and my seasoned residents are eager to see their homes become not only energy efficient, but also accessible, as many are struggling with access because of disability.

The Eastside Community Network is going to be able to establish the Stoudamire Wellness HUB for the eastside Detroit residents who are, right now, struggling to access healthcare.

We are also going to be able to help, some relief--and this is just the beginning--to help many of our families in Dearborn Heights and Wayne County address the number of families that continue to be impacted by flooding because of Ecorse Creek's challenges.

We are also going to be able to support ProsperUS Detroit Micro Lending to support some of our small businesses and expand some of the work they have already done to Detroit all the way to western Wayne and Inkster.

I am also so proud of the investment that we are going to have in the Ruth Ellis Center to provide safe, affordable, identity-affirming housing for marginalized Black and Brown Detroiters, especially my LGBTQ-plus youth.

I am also going to be able to stand there with my City of Wayne residents to see, finally, the Goudy Park Amphitheater space be able to be rehabbed. It is a space that many of our schools use for graduations, for gatherings, and just really truly coming together as a community.

We are also going to be able to see over 300 of our high school students in the Western Wayne School District, along with the partnership of SEMCA, be able to access vocational technology, career- tech programs.

We are also going to see a $2.5 million investment in our Inkster Senior Wellness Center. This is one of--again, Inkster has some of my spectacular seasoned residents, and they are eager, again, to have a space to come together, especially after the challenges during the pandemic.

I want to thank Chairwoman DeLauro and the Appropriations Committee staff, and the incredible hard work of my team, for a thoughtful and engaging process that really targeted communities with the most needs.

I am proud and committed to continued engagement with all of my 13th Congressional District communities to find funding to address the needs because they truly deserve it.

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