The idea for the Frederick J. Felton Neighborhood Matching Grant Program originated with City Council member Michael Sesma, who made the formal motion at the July 19 Mayor and Council meeting.

The motion passed unanimously with Mayor Sidney Katz calling it an “excellent idea.”

An emotional Sesma said he wanted to recognize his “good friend,” whom he later described as a “great public servant.”

“Given his commitment to our neighborhoods and our residents it made sense to me that we recognize him in a way that reflected his service,” said Sesma. “He organized the Council in the Communities effort and was always very responsive to citizen and neighborhood concerns, regularly bringing the issues to the attention of the council.”

The matching grant program is available to all homeowner associations, condominium associations, citizens associations, or any group that represents a majority of the residents in any given neighborhood. It began in 1998 to assist groups with neighborhood improvements.

“Since that time, over 100 neighborhood grants have been approved for projects ranging from landscaping enhancements to engineer studies,” said Monica Sanchez, Gaithersburg’s intergovernmental affairs coordinator.

According to Sanchez, $60,000 is designated in this year’s budget for the program and 19 neighborhood matching grant applications have been received to date. She said the 2011 grants will be presented to the Mayor and Council for approval at the August 2 meeting.

“It will be a special pleasure to announce the recipients of the Felton neighborhood grants at our meeting in August,” Sesma said.

The idea for the Frederick J. Felton Neighborhood Matching Grant Program originated with City Council member Michael Sesma, who made the formal motion at the July 19 Mayor and Council meeting.

The motion passed unanimously with Mayor Sidney Katz calling it an “excellent idea.”

An emotional Sesma said he wanted to recognize his “good friend,” whom he later described as a “great public servant.”

“Given his commitment to our neighborhoods and our residents it made sense to me that we recognize him in a way that reflected his service,” said Sesma. “He organized the Council in the Communities effort and was always very responsive to citizen and neighborhood concerns, regularly bringing the issues to the attention of the council.”

The matching grant program is available to all homeowner associations, condominium associations, citizens associations, or any group that represents a majority of the residents in any given neighborhood. It began in 1998 to assist groups with neighborhood improvements.

“Since that time, over 100 neighborhood grants have been approved for projects ranging from landscaping enhancements to engineer studies,” said Monica Sanchez, Gaithersburg’s intergovernmental affairs coordinator.

According to Sanchez, $60,000 is designated in this year’s budget for the program and 19 neighborhood matching grant applications have been received to date. She said the 2011 grants will be presented to the Mayor and Council for approval at the August 2 meeting.

“It will be a special pleasure to announce the recipients of the Felton neighborhood grants at our meeting in August,” Sesma said.