Explanation
Background: Columbus City Council, through the office of Councilmember Rob Dorans, has been awarded an additional $500,000 grant from The Ohio State University, in partnership with the Alliance for the American Dream, in support of Columbus City Council’s effort to simplify the record sealing application process and expand access to legal support services for Columbus residents with a criminal record. A $50,000 grant award (Ordinance 1484-2020), and $25,000 grant award (Ordinance 3294-2019) were previously accepted, bringing the total grant award from The Ohio State University, in partnership with the Alliance for the American Dream, to $575,000.
The $500,000.00 grant award is made available through December 31, 2022. The funds will be used to develop the Opportunity Port platform based on the project presented by Opportunity Port in response to the Second Community Challenge issued by The Ohio State University, in partnership with the Alliance for the American Dream. These funds will be used exclusively for the charitable and educational purpose of developing the project and will be allocated to support legitimate project costs, including the expenses associated with the identification and convening of collaborative partners, co-development of actionable ideas or policies addressing Alliance for the American Dream goals, vetting ideas with key stakeholders/subject matter experts, and developing, testing, and evaluating the Opportunity Port platform.
Smart Columbus, LLC will serve as the administrator for this grant. A waiver of competitive bidding is requested, as Smart Columbus, LLC has been integrally involved in the development process up to this point. It is in the city's best interest and it would be manifestly impractical to bid for administration given the timeline required for expenditure and scope of the project presented by Opportunity Port.
FISCAL IMPACT: An additional grant award of $500,000.00 from The Ohio State University, in p...
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